Senior Employee Relations Manager (Fixed Term)

Glasgow Life; Glasgow; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

LGPS pension

Employee assistance programme

Discounts on Glasgow Club

Cycle-to-work scheme

Flexible work policy

Job summary

Glasgow Life is seeking a Senior Employee Relations Manager on a fixed-term basis through 28 May 2027. The role blends home and office work as part of our HR team, reporting to the Head of HR.

You will lead ER strategies, advise on terms and conditions, and support industrial relations across a broad service portfolio. The post requires CIPD (ideally) and strong knowledge of employment law, with proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and unions while delivering high-quality customer

Qualifications

• Educated to degree level or equivalent.
• Ideally CIPD qualified.
• Experience in a busy HR environment delivering customer service.
• Expert knowledge of employment legislation and HR policies.
• Ability to diagnose complex issues and propose solutions.
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills.
• Experience working with Trade Unions.

Responsibilities

• Support the Head of HR to implement ER strategies and provide leadership on ER matters.
• Collaborate with senior managers and unions to influence workforce outcomes.

Skills

Strategic HR leadership

Employee relations

Stakeholder management

Trade unions engagement

Communication skills

Influencing and collaboration

Education

Degree-level education

CIPD qualification

Tools

HR information systems

Employment law references

Job description

We believe everyone deserves a great Glasgow life and that starts with the people who work here.

Glasgow Life is a charity like no other. Our vision is to improve the lives of everyone in our city. To help us achieve that, we are looking for a Senior Employee Relations Manager to join our HR team on a temporary basis until 28 May 2027.

Our teams focus on making a real difference through culture and sport in Glasgow. If you’re excited by the idea of being part of that, this could be the job for you.

What you need to know

Contract type: Fixed Term until 28 May 2027

Location: You will spend part of your week at home, and part of your week in one of our offices.

These posts are excepted under Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exclusions and Exceptions) (Scotland) Order 2013 (as amended).

If offer is made to internal employee (Glasgow Life or Council Family), at the end of the temporary period, eligible employees, if agreed will have a right to return to a role at their substantive grade within the council family.

What you’ll do

As Senior Employee Relations Manager, you’ll be a part of the HR team, reporting to the Head of HR. You’ll play an essential role in supporting Glasgow Life to achieve its strategic objectives across a diverse portfolio of service areas. Your work will make a visible and lasting difference.

You will:

• support the Head of HR to implement ER strategies and provide strategic and expert leadership on ER related matters including managing the provision of support, advice and guidance on all aspects of Glasgow Life’s terms and conditions, policies, industrial relations, recruitment, performance management, and HR Information.

The role requires an ability to work collaboratively and influence diverse groups of senior managers, staff and key stakeholders including trade unions.

Who you are

We’re looking for someone with the right skills who brings energy to the role.

We’re looking for someone who is:

• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience in a related discipline.
• Ideally CIPD qualified.

And has:

• Experience of managing a busy HR environment, focussing on delivering strong customer service.
• Expert knowledge of employment legislation and HR policies and practices, including best practice and current and future trends.
• Can utilise a range of best practice, strategies and data to diagnose and develop solutions to complex issues.
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills to develop effective working relationships at all levels.
• Experience of working positively with Trade Unions.
• Understanding of equality, diversity and inclusion best practice.
• Ability to generate creative ideas for improvements to service activity and methods of working.

Download the Person Specification in the Job Attachments section on MyJobScotland. Use this to shape your application and show how your experience aligns with the job.

When selecting candidates for interviews, managers will look for candidates who meet all the ‘essential’ criteria listed in the Person Specification. If there are many candidates, they may also consider desirable skills. So, include those if they apply to you.

What we offer

At Glasgow Life, our work changes lives. As a charity, we bring communities together and support wellbeing through sport, culture, heritage, and learning.

Learn more about Glasgow Life in our 10 Facts video in the Further Information section on MyJobScotland.

We support you to live a great life. Inside and outside of work. Some of our benefits include:

Holiday

When you join, you’ll get 30 days’ holiday. Plus 6.5 public holidays if you’re full-time. This increases to 35 days after 5 years of service.

Fancy a bit more time off? You can buy extra holiday too!

Pension

Join the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) – a Defined Benefit scheme that provides you with a secure pension for later life.

Support

Sometimes we all need support and a listening ear. Our free and confidential Employee Assistance Programme can support your mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing.

Discounts

As a colleague, you can enjoy discounts on the things you love, from Glasgow Club memberships to our museum shops and our online store. We are also part of the cycle-to-work scheme, helping you stay active.

Flexibility and development

We are proud of our flexible and inclusive work policies, which help you balance work and life. We also offer support for learning, development and career progression.

Please note that Glasgow Life is an Arm’s Length External Organisation to Glasgow City Council. We are currently completing a Job Evaluation exercise and introducing a new pay and grading structure. This may impact current salaries quoted in job adverts. To learn more, visit - https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/jobevaluation.

Who We Are

Our Corporate Services teams keep Glasgow Life running at its best. From Business & Strategy, Finance, HR, Infrastructure, Marketing, Retail, they deliver the behind-the-scenes work that powers everything we do. Whether it's shaping strategy with sharp insights, crafting compelling messages, supporting our people, managing over 100 venues, or generating vital income—this team makes it happen.

Diversity and Fair Work at Glasgow Life

We’re working to build a team that reflects the rich diversity of Glasgow’s communities — where everyone feels valued, respected, and able to be their full, authentic selves at work.

We’re proud to be a Disability Confident and Carer Positive employer, and we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. Learn more about our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion here: https://www.glasgowlife.org.uk/the-small-print/an-inclusive-employer

We’re also committed to Fair Work First principles, including effective voice, opportunity, security, fulfilment and respect for all our staff. Learn more about our approach to Fair Work First here: https://www.glasgowlife.org.uk/about-us/fair-work-first

We’re working hard to address underrepresentation in our workforce. We especially welcome applications from people with disabilities and from ethnic minority communities.

The closing date for this job is 11.59pm on 25 October 2026. Interviews are provisionally scheduled for 2 November 2026.