[rarec]

Shouldn't is a funny idea, as is properly functioning.

HR should never be considered "on your side." It's hardly considered cynical to presume a subsection of a company to care more for the company's than an aggrieved employee who would likely stir up trouble.

If this behaviour is as rampant as it seems to be, what incentivization reinforced it? More of a tangent thought, but if this keeps occurring what is causing the disparaging treatment?