Water agencies may have hundreds or even thousands of employees. Those employees need a number of services, such as compensation (salary and raises), benefits, training, counseling, and employee relations. Human resource specialists are expert in one or more of these areas. They are the behind-the-scenes players who help employees stay focused on their work by:

• recruiting, interviewing, and hiring qualified people for available jobs;
• planning and writing personnel, training, and labor relation policies;
• administering benefits, safety, and recreation programs;
• conducting job classification studies so employees have a way to measure their career path;
• developing wage and salary schedules that provide high enough pay to keep skilled labor and professionals;
• coordinating negotiations with labor unions that speak for the needs of some of the work force;
• coordinating with outside vendors to deliver specialized services, such as training programs on how to deal with violence in the workplace or be a more effective supervisor.