SHRM Conference 2018

In October of 2018, I had the opportunity to travel to Wisconsin Dells, representing the University Center and UW-Whitewater at the 2018 SHRM conference.

At this conference we attended key note speaker sessions, break-out sessions, and a vendor fair. Although the conference is centered around Human Resources, as a public relations major, I still did learn many new things that will help me in my future job search once I graduate college. It was interesting to see the other side of the hiring process and to hear what employers are really looking for when hiring people. One of the most interesting break-out sessions I attended was a conversation about whether marijuana should be taken off of work-related drug tests. Many companies are having difficulties finding employees because many people cannot pass the marijuana part of a drug test. Many states are now legalizing recreational marijuana, and it is projected that in a few years it will be legal nation-wide. From what I gathered in this break-out session, companies are now moving towards taking marijuana off of company drug tests, as the stigma of marijuana being a gateway drug is diminishing.