I think the major concern is the motivation behind the change. From the report HR's response to pushback on this change was basically "we don't care what this

I think the major concern is the motivation behind the change. From the report HR's response to pushback on this change was basically "we don't care what this breaks deal with it, we are not reverting, implement a workaroud, end of discussion". This seems highly unusual for what seems essentially to be a technical change. For starters, why is HR involved at all in this change?