HR Advisor

Port of Tilbury London; Tilbury; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Discretionary bonus

Generous annual leave

Pension scheme with employer/employee`

On-site parking

Employee Assistance Programme

Job summary

Port of Tilbury London Ltd is seeking an experienced HR Advisor to manage complex employee relations within a highly unionised port environment. You will partner with managers to navigate grievances, disciplinaries, and restructures, ensuring fair, compliant outcomes.

In a fully onsite role, you will build strong relationships with trade unions and drive change programmes while maintaining robust HR processes and data integrity.

Qualifications

• CIPD qualified or equivalent HR experience in employee relations.
• Extensive ER casework in a fast-paced, unionised environment.
• Solid knowledge of UK employment law and best practice.

Responsibilities

• Lead a high volume of complex employee relations cases from start to finish.
• Set case strategy, assess risk, and ensure legally compliant decisions.
• Translate employment law into practical guidance for managers.
• Coordinate quarterly union meetings and support collective bargaining.
• Support organisational change with robust business cases and consultative processes.
• Maintain HR processes, contracts, and data with audit trails.

Skills

CIPD qualified

ER case knowledge

Employment law

Union relations

Manager coaching

Data interpretation

HRIS/payroll

MS Office

Travel readiness

UK working rights

Education

CIPD qualified

Tools

HRIS/Payroll systems

Microsoft Office

Job description

Job Description

Job Description

Location: Port of Tilbury London Ltd, Leslie Ford House

Job Title: HR Advisor

Location: Port of Tilbury

Hours: Monday to Friday 09:00 – 17:00

Compensation: £42,000 -£48,000 dependant on experience

At Forth Ports, we keep trade, logistics, and infrastructure moving. Every day, our teams support the flow of goods, materials, and services that businesses and communities rely on, helping to power economic growth across the UK and beyond. Our people are at the core of everything we do, and their expertise, commitment, and innovation drive our success.

With our commitment to reach carbon neutrality by 2032 and Net Zero by 2042, we' re investing heavily in sustainable and digital technologies, including major growth in offshore wind and greener port operations. For you, this means joining a business that' s evolving, ambitious, and making a real difference.

About The Role

This is an operationally embedded HR role with a strong focus on complex employee relations and industrial relations across the Port of Tilbury. Working in a highly unionised, safety-critical environment, you will partner closely with managers to lead employee relations activity from initial assessment through to conclusion, balancing employment law, internal procedures and operational requirements to achieve fair, consistent and commercially sound outcomes. You will also play a key role in building constructive relationships with recognised trade unions, supporting organisational change and using employee relations insight to strengthen manager capability and business performance.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead a high volume of complex employee relations cases, including disciplinary, grievance, capability, long-term absence, redundancy, restructuring and organisational change matters, from initial assessment to conclusion.
• Set case strategy, assess legal and operational risk, maintain momentum and ensure investigations, hearings and supporting documentation enable fair and legally compliant decisions.
• Interpret, develop and consistently apply HR policies and procedures, translating employment law and case developments into clear, practical guidance for managers.
• Coordinate quarterly union meetings across collectively bargained areas, including agendas, supporting information, decisions and follow-up actions.
• Support collective bargaining and negotiation activity by providing workforce data, ER insight, cost information and operational context, and lead Stage 1 of the agreed process.
• Build credible, constructive relationships with trade union representatives and ensure appropriate consultation on change, redundancy, redeployment and matters covered by collective agreements.
• Lead performance and health-related capability cases, working with managers and Occupational Health on improvement plans, reasonable adjustments, phased returns, restricted duties and redeployment.
• Support organisational change activity by preparing robust business cases and communications and ensuring fair, meaningful consultation.
• Support the delivery of HR-related projects, coordinating agreed actions and working with relevant stakeholders to achieve project objectives and timescales.
• Contribute to continuous improvement projects across the People function by gathering information, maintaining project documentation and supporting the implementation of agreed changes.
• Use case data and trends to identify recurring risks, recommend targeted interventions and improve manager capability, consistency and business performance.
• Support the delivery and follow-up of employee engagement surveys and engagement meetings, helping managers develop, track and communicate actions arising from employee feedback.
• Maintain accurate contracts, correspondence, approvals, payroll changes, HR systems and audit trails, working closely with Talent Acquisition, Learning and Development and Occupational Health to deliver joined-up people support.

What We're Looking For

We are looking for a confident, pragmatic and highly experienced employee relations specialist who can operate credibly in a complex, fast paced and highly unionised environment. You will be comfortable taking ownership of sensitive and high-risk cases, constructively challenging managers and building effective working relationships with trade union representatives and senior stakeholders. Strong judgement, discretion, resilience and the ability to balance legal risk with operational realities are essential. This is a fully onsite role, five days per week, so you must live within a reasonable commutable distance of the Port of Tilbury and be able to attend the site consistently.

Skills & Qualifications

• CIPD qualified, or able to demonstrate significant equivalent experience in a complex HR generalist and employee relations role.
• Extensive experience independently managing a high volume of complex employee relations casework in a large, fast-paced, operational and unionised environment.
• Proven expertise across disciplinary, grievance, capability, long-term absence, organisational change, consultation, redundancy and restructuring matters.
• Comprehensive and current knowledge of UK employment law and employee relations best practice, with the ability to apply legal principles pragmatically in complex workplace situations.
• Substantial experience in a unionised setting, including consultation, trade union relationship management, collective bargaining support and positive industrial relations.
• Demonstrable experience advising, coaching, influencing and constructively challenging managers at all levels on complex, high-risk ER matters.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with sound judgement and the discretion to handle sensitive and confidential matters professionally.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and organisational skills, with the ability to assess risk, interpret people data, identify trends and manage competing priorities to deadline.
• Good working knowledge of HRIS/payroll systems and Microsoft Office, together with a proactive continuous-improvement mindset.
• Flexibility to work outside normal office hours from time to time to accommodate shift patterns across the Port.
• Full driving licence, valid in the UK.
• Willingness to travel occasionally to our Scottish sites to provide support when required.
• Full UK working rights.

What Forth Ports Can Offer You

At Forth Ports, our people are our priority, and we are committed to creating a flexible, open, and supportive working culture. As part of our team, you will enjoy

• A competitive salary
• Discretionary bonus
• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Defined contribution pension scheme with up to 16.5% joint contribution plus life assurance at 4x salary
• In‑house Occupational Health — Provides professional workplace health advice, support, and guidance for employees across all sites
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) — Delivered through Health Assured, offering 24/7, 365‑day confidential wellbeing support via the Wisdom app or telephone access, covering mental health, financial advice, legal guidance, and emotional wellbeing
• Physiotherapy Support — Access to physiotherapy sessions through three external providers in Scotland, plus an onsite physiotherapist once per week in Tilbury
• An annual Christmas thank you gift of a complimentary turkey or meat-free alternative for all employees
• GymFlex health club memberships offering discounted access to gyms including Nuffield Health, PureGym, Anytime Fitness, The Gym Group, and selected local gyms
• Cycle to Work scheme to support affordable, sustainable commuting
• On-site free parking available for all employees
• Attractive family-friendly policies, including enhanced maternity cover
• Employee discount platform providing savings on UK-wide restaurants, retail, car rentals, days out, and holidays

We value diversity and inclusivity, and we are an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds and will consider all applications for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability status.

As a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant, we are committed to ensuring that members of the Armed Forces community are treated fairly and are not disadvantaged in their civilian careers because of their service.

We welcome applications from veterans, reservists, cadet force adult volunteers, and military spouses/partners, and we actively support flexible and inclusive recruitment practices.