What side is HR on, anyway?

As an HR professional, where do you place yourself, on the side of the employee or the employer? I know HR is mostly inclined to stay neutral, but that's not always possible. So where do you generally align yourself?

In any company, the job of the employee is to maximize value for the organization. HR is certainly no exception to that rule. However, how you go about generating that value differs. Obviously, circumstances must be judged individually, but on the whole, I would argue that the best way to add value is by generally operating on the side of the employee. I would argue that good HR errs on the side of the employee because that attitude will be perceptible to the employee, and help keep him or her engaged and productive. I would also argue that this is particularly sound policy here in Canada, where labour law as a whole tends to favour the employee anyway. This does not mean flouting policy in favour of every employee or bending the rules, but rather means navigating between the often conflicting demands of the employee and employer, and doing your best to fundamental equitable solution that works for everybody. Good policy should have some flexibility to it anyway, as unforeseen circumstances often arise.

What do you think?