SENIOR EMPLOYEE RELATIONS ADVISOR

Brisbane City Council; Brisbane; Hybrid; AUD 116,000 - 128,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working arrangements

Professional development

Wellbeing and safety focus

Free gym and wellness centre

Award-winning superannuation

Generous leave provisions

Job summary

Brisbane City Council is seeking a Senior Employee Relations Advisor within the HR Delivery team. You will provide expert end-to-end support on employee and industrial relations issues, including performance, misconduct, absenteeism, grievances, and organisational change.

You will guide leaders with practical solutions, support workplace investigations, and contribute to organisational redesign and continuous improvements to strengthen culture and drive performance.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to apply critical thinking and solve complex employee relations issues.
• Strong knowledge of legislation, industrial instruments, policies and procedures.
• Experience handling performance, misconduct, absenteeism and workplace grievances.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and negotiation skills.
• Highly developed communication skills and the ability to convey complex information clearly.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert, end-to-end advice and support on a broad range of employee and industrial relations matters, including performance, misconduct, absenteeism, grievances, organisational change and workplace investigations.
• Help leaders navigate complex people challenges with practical solutions balancing business needs with positive employee outcomes.
• Contribute to organisational redesign and continuous improvements that strengthen culture and drive performance.
• Collaborate with the HR Delivery team to implement strategic industrial arrangements and governance improvements.

Skills

Critical thinking

Employee relations knowledge

Legislation & policies

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Organisational skills

Job description

Salary Range: (Band 6) AUD $116,089.00 - $128,453.00 + Superannuation (Remuneration stated is for full-time positions)

Work type:temporary fulltime

Duration: Up to 2 years

Location: Hybrid – up to 50 percent working from home and remainder of time in Brisbane CBD office

Our Business

Corporate Services supports, equips and helps guide Council to deliver the Brisbane Vision through centralised corporate services and a customer-focused approach. We are committed to delivering better value by continuously improving our people, our processes and our technology.

Our Branch

People and Culture is an active partner and branch within Corporate Services. We support flexible ways of working and our team are passionate about achieving personal and professional growth to support lifestyles and priorities. We are committed to developing and supporting all our people to be safe, well, capable and agile.

Our Team

The Employee Relations team supports the organisation to confidentially manage people and employment matters by developing contemporary industrial arrangements, providing strategic industrial advice and support, and building the capability of our leaders to confidentially manage their employee relations issues.

The team is structured into Industrial Relations and Advice, HR Delivery, Governance and Improvement and Strategy and Business Services. There is currently an opportunity for a Senior Employee Relations Advisor to join the HR Delivery team.

The Role

As a Senior Employee Relations Advisor in HR Delivery team, you will play a critical role working closely with leaders across the organisation. You will provide expert advice and end-to-end support on a broad range of employee and industrial relations matters, including performance, misconduct, absenteeism, grievances, organisational change and workplace investigations. You'll help leaders navigate complex people challenges with confidence, delivering practical solutions that balance business needs with positive employee outcomes.

Beyond case management, you will contribute to organisational redesign and continuous improvements that strengthen culture, drive performance and support Council's vision.

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• Proven ability to apply critical thinking, sound judgement and problem-solving skills to complex employee relations matters.
• Strong knowledge of employee and industrial relations, including relevant legislation, industrial instruments, policies and procedures.
• Demonstrated experience managing employee relations matters such as performance, misconduct, absenteeism and workplace grievances.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement, consultation and negotiation skills, with the ability to influence, coach and support leaders.
• Highly developed communication skills, with the ability to convey complex information clearly and effectively.
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to collaborate within a team and manage competing priorities.

Benefits of working for Council include:

• meaningful work that directly supports creating a productive and positive workforce for our city
• flexible working arrangements and flexible working hours
• professional development and career progression opportunities
• a strong focus on safety, wellbeing and performance leadership
• free gym and wellness centre
• award winning superannuation fund
• generous leave provisions

This position requires a Criminal History Check for the preferred candidate.

Brisbane City Council is a multi-award winning accessible and inclusive workplace where our people represent the diverse communities we serve, are supported, and can feel safe. Council has been awarded Employer of the Year at the National Disability Awards and has been recognised multiple times with ‘Gold Employer’ status from the Australian Workplace Equality Index for LGBTI inclusion.