ER Specialist

Anchor Hanover Group; Bradford; Hybrid; GBP 34,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Anchor Hanover Group in Bradford is seeking an experienced Employee Relations Specialist to deliver a coaching-led ER service. Hybrid working with 1-2 days in the Bradford office. Full-time permanent role offering £38,000 per year.

You will advise managers on complex ER matters, coach through challenges, manage sensitive cases, and contribute to process improvements across People Services Delivery.

Qualifications

• Significant Employee Relations experience within a large, complex organisation.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and Employee Relations best practice.
• Proven experience independently managing complex and sensitive Employee Relations cases.
• Excellent coaching, listening and problem-solving skills.
• The ability to influence, support and appropriately challenge managers at all levels.
• Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert Employee Relations advice and practical support to managers.
• Coach and guide managers through people challenges.
• Manage a varied portfolio of complex and sensitive Employee Relations cases.
• Support managers through formal processes and prepare high‑quality documentation.
• Apply employment law knowledge to provide pragmatic, commercially focused advice.
• Identify emerging people risks and mitigation plans.
• Build strong relationships across the organisation and with People teams.
• Champion a coaching-led Employee Relations culture.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of ER processes and guidance.
• Use ER data to identify trends and inform decision-making.

Skills

Employee relations

Employment law knowledge

Coaching

Stakeholder management

Communication

Problem solving

Relationship building

Multi-tasking

Education

CIPD Level 5 qualification

Job description

Employee Relations Specialist

Location: Hybrid– 1-2 days per week in our Bradford officewith flexibility to attend as required.
Contract: Full Time | Permanent
Salary: £38,000 per annum

We'relooking for an experienced Employee Relations Specialist to join our People Services Delivery team and playan important rolein delivering a high-quality, coaching-led Employee Relations service across the organisation. Working in a fast-paced and collaborative environment,you'llbe a trusted advisor to managers, supporting a positive colleague experience and helping to ensure peoplemattersare managed fairly, consistently and in line with employment law and best practice.

This is an exciting opportunity for an Employee Relations professional with strong employment law knowledge, excellent relationship-buildingskillsand a pragmatic approach to problem-solving.You'llwork closely with managers,colleaguesand stakeholders across the business, contributing to a customer-focused People ServicesDeliveryfunction that builds manager capability, promotes effective peoplemanagementand supports successful business outcomes.

What You'll Do

Provide expert Employee Relations advice and practical supportto managers across a broad range of people matters, helping them navigate complex situations with confidence while balancing business needs, colleagueexperienceand legal compliance.

Coach and guide managers through people challenges, enabling them to assess risks, consider options, make informeddecisionsand take ownership of managing employee relations matters effectively and consistently.

Manage a varied portfolio of complex and sensitive Employee Relations casesincluding disciplinary, grievance, absence, capability, conduct and organisational change matters, ensuring outcomes are fair,timely, well-documented and legally compliant.

Support managers throughout formal people processes, helping them prepare high-quality documentation including investigation reports, hearing packs, outcomelettersand management case files that stand up to scrutiny and reflect best practice.

Apply your employment law knowledge and professional judgementto provide pragmatic, commercially focused advice, helping to minimise organisational risk and ensure decisions are aligned to both legislation and company policies.

Identifyemerging people risks and trends,proactively escalating concerns whereappropriateand working with stakeholders to put effective mitigation plans and preventative solutions in place.

Build strong and credible relationshipsacross the organisation, partnering with managers, colleagues, employeerepresentativesand People & Culture teams to deliver joined-up solutions and positive business outcomes.

Champion a coaching-led Employee Relations culture,encouraging early intervention, manager ownership and proactive people management approaches that reduce repeat issues and improve colleague experiences.

Contribute to continuous improvement and service development,supporting the enhancement of Employee Relations processes, policies,guidanceand ways of working to create a more efficient,consistentand customer-focused service.

Use ER data, caseinsightsand management information toidentifytrends and opportunities, helping to drive organisational learning, improve manager capability and support evidence-based decision-making across the business.

Support colleagues within the wider People Services team,sharing knowledgeand contributing to the development of a collaborative, high-performing team culture.

You'llBring:

Significant Employee Relations experience within a large, complex organisation, with a proventrack recordof supporting managers across a wide range of employee relations matters and navigating complex organisational environments.

Strong and up-to-date knowledge of UK employment law and Employee Relations best practice, with the ability to interpret legislation, assess risk and provide practical, commercially focused advice that supports effective decision-making.

Proven experience independently managing complex and sensitive Employee Relations cases, including disciplinary, grievance, absence, capability, conduct and organisational change matters, ensuring fair, balanced and legally compliant outcomes.

Excellent coaching, listening and problem-solving skills, with the ability to build manager confidence, encourage ownership of people issues and support effective resolution of challenging situations.

The ability to influence, support and appropriately challenge managers at all levels,providingconstructive guidance while balancing business requirements, colleagueexperienceand organisational risk.

Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills, with the ability to toestablishcredibility quickly, develop trusted partnerships and work effectively with managers, colleagues, employeerepresentativesand People teams.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex people and employment lawmattersclearly, prepare high-quality case documentation and communicate confidently with a range of audiences.

A customer-focused and solutions-driven approach, committed to delivering a positive colleague and manager experience while ensuring consistent application of policy,processand employment legislation.

The ability to manage multiple priorities and competing demands in a fast-paced environment,maintaininghigh levelsof accuracy, responsiveness and professionalism while handling a varied caseload.

Experience working collaboratively across multiple teams and functions, building effective working relationships to deliver joined-up people solutions, improve service delivery and achieve positive organisational outcomes.

A proactive and continuous improvement mindset, with the ability toidentifytrends, share best practice and contribute to improvements in Employee Relations processes,guidanceand ways of working.

Qualifications

CIPD Level 5 qualificationor working towards(orEquivalent relevant experience)

We are unable to offer sponsorship for this position. Therefore, candidates must be able to demonstrate their legal right to work in the UK without requiring sponsorship now or in the future.