[Verse 1] Back in the sixties, personnel was simple then Hiring and firing, keeping records with a pen But change was coming, laws were passed each passing year Equal Pay in sixty-three made wage gaps disappear [Verse 2] Civil Rights Act sixty-four, Title Seven's call No discrimination in hiring after all Age protection sixty-seven, track decisions made Document everything now, compliance can't be delayed [Chorus] From personnel to HR, the transformation's here Laws pile up year by year, responsibilities clear Equal pay, civil rights, safety standards too ERISA, ADA, FMLA coming through When legal says "operational" and ops say "people issue" HR gets the compliance work, that's how the story continues [Verse 3] OSHA seventy brought safety to the floor Incident tracking, recordkeeping, so much more Seventy-two expanded enforcement all around Affirmative action plans for federal contracts found [Verse 4] ERISA seventy-four changed benefits for good Fiduciary duties, reporting as they should Pregnancy protection seventy-eight arrived Policy updates, accommodations to be derived [Chorus] From personnel to HR, the transformation's here Laws pile up year by year, responsibilities clear Equal pay, civil rights, safety standards too ERISA, ADA, FMLA coming through When legal says "operational" and ops say "people issue" HR gets the compliance work, that's how the story continues [Bridge] Immigration Reform eighty-six, I-9 for every hire WARN Act notifications when layoffs require ADA in the nineties brought accommodations to light Interactive dialogue, making workplaces right [Verse 5] Family Leave Act early nineties, the final piece Leave tracking, eligibility, obligations never cease Each law created paperwork, training to be done HR was the only choice when all was said and run [Chorus] From personnel to HR, the transformation's here Laws pile up year by year, responsibilities clear Equal pay, civil rights, safety standards too ERISA, ADA, FMLA coming through When legal says "operational" and ops say "people issue" HR gets the compliance work, that's how the story continues [Outro] Touched every employee, had the records in place HR became compliance, set the regulatory pace From simple personnel to complex HR machine The civil rights era changed everything we've seen
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