I will admit it, I am a Generation X-er, and at times I have been righteously indignant for no discernible reason. This seems to be one of the hallmark characteristics of my generation but recently all of that changed. A member of the Susquehanna Valley Chapter of the American Payroll Association, Gail Bryner, CPP, reached out and asked me to speak at her workplace. However, there was a catch: I would not be speaking to payroll or human resource professionals, but to the senior class at Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School.
After throwing some ideas around, with Lindsey Franson, a social studies teacher at the school, we settled on the following topics for the seminar: The Family Medical Leave Act, The Americans with Disability Act, Travel Time and Overtime, and My Rights to my Personnel File. Volunteers had 40 minutes to cover all 4 topics and were tasked with teaching twice a day for an entire week right before Thanksgiving.
As the only available speaker, I prepared the PowerPoint and on the first morning at 10 a.m. arrived at the designated classroom. I will admit I was frightened. Teenagers scare me. They did when I was a teenager, and they still do now. By the end of the week, however, I had answered some great questions. We talked about reasonable accommodations, handbooks, and paystubs, among many other topics. As I left my 10th class on the last day, I had an epiphany: payroll professionals really can make an impact and these young'uns (as my grandmother would say) are amazing!
As payroll professionals, “We few, we happy few, we band of brothers…” are more than just stodgy number-crunchers hovering in dark corners and churning out paychecks. We have A LOT of useful information. We know stuff, and more importantly, we know stuff that generations after us really need to know. I encourage each of you to share, inform, teach, and guide when given the opportunity.
Teacher Lindsey Franson explained, “The reason our school wanted to invest in a program like this was so our students would graduate with a set of skills, not just in their program area of expertise, but skills that would prepare them for adulthood. They are learning how to rent an apartment, apply for loans, and exercise their rights in the workplace. We want our students to be successful and it is our duty to prepare them for the world they are about to enter.”
This new generation and the generation after are going to change things. They will know their rights, demand them, and lead. We know from the pundits that they will not work for a company whose leadership lacks integrity, whose policies do not include and support diversity, and whose benefits do not allow for flexibility. I for one am grateful that this new workforce will embrace the protections that laws have provided. Our generation helped legislate and their generation will enforce.
This Gen X-er is now less righteously indignantly and more hopeful. I am glad I chose payroll as my profession and glad to have opportunities that impact the community. We should all have such luck! I left this experience having learned more than I taught. Now THAT is an education!
