I know HR is not our friend, but I think even worse is the fact that so many companies now are using external HR consultants.
I don't really have any background knowledge on them, so if someone has done research on this and has insight, please share! But my current and previous employer use external HR to handle HR issues. tbh I don't even think my current company really even makes an effort (and I love my job and enjoy working for my company).
HR isn't our friend, but even so it feels like Carol down the hall in HR would still care more than some consultant three timezones away.