Employee Relations Associate

Ramapo; Mahwah (NJ); On-site; USD 88,000 - 107,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

New Jersey State Benefits

Generous PTO

Tuition discounts for employees

Job summary

Ramapo College of New Jersey seeks an experienced Employee Relations Associate to support an ER strategy and manage faculty and staff personnel actions. You will report to the Executive Director of Employee Relations and Faculty Resources, coordinating policy implementation and reporting within the TLC Core.

You will compile reports, maintain databases, and liaise with college leadership, deans, and union representatives to ensure compliant, timely personnel processes and communications.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field; Master’s degree desirable.
• Minimum 4 years (6+ preferred) in employee relations or related field; higher education experience preferred.
• Experience with Banner, HRIS, and MS Office; ability to manage databases and generate reports.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate and monitor the work of College committees during Tenure, Promotion, and related processes.
• Administer personnel processes for AFT Professional Staff and APAS; manage calendars and reporting.
• Prepare correspondence, maintain files, and assist in budget and policy administration.
• Develop and recommend goals, policies, and procedures for Employee Relations.
• Collaborate with administrators, union officials, deans, and leaders on personnel matters.

Skills

Organizational skills

Communication skills

Interpersonal skills

Confidentiality

Data management

MS Office

Education

Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field

Master’s degree desirable

Tools

Banner

HRIS

Microsoft Office

Job description

About Ramapo College of New Jersey

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state’s premier public liberal arts college, where students build the confidence, skills, and perspective to thrive in a changing world. Located on a breathtaking 300-acre campus in the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains and just a short trip from New York City, Ramapo blends the best of both worlds: natural beauty, state-of-the-art facilities, and access to one of the world’s most dynamic job markets.

With approximately 6,000 students, Ramapo offers a personalized, student-centered experience defined by a 16:1 student–faculty ratio, small classes, and faculty who mentor, challenge, and inspire. Students can explore over 40 undergraduate majors and a growing portfolio of graduate programs in fields such as Business Administration, Data Science, Nursing, Educational Leadership, Social Work, Special Education, and the Doctor of Nursing Practice. Across every discipline, Ramapo emphasizes hands‑on learning through internships, co‑ops, study abroad, faculty research, service projects, and real-world experiences that prepare students for meaningful careers.

Our campus is home to cutting‑edge academic spaces, including the Anisfield School of Business, the Adler Center for Nursing Excellence, the Sharp Sustainability Education Center, the Berrie Center for Performing and Visual Arts, the Les Paul Music Studio, and the Peter P. Mercer Learning Commons. Ramapo’s award‑winning residence halls are consistently ranked among the best in New Jersey.

Nationally recognized for excellence and value, Ramapo is ranked #1 among New Jersey public colleges by College Choice, named a Best Regional University North by U.S. News & World Report, and celebrated by Kiplinger’s, Money Magazine, Colleges of Distinction, and Victory Media’s Military Friendly rankings.

At Ramapo, students don’t just earn degrees; they discover their strengths, explore new possibilities, and build the foundation for bold futures.

Working at Ramapo

Ramapo College of New Jersey has been recognized as a “Great College to Work For,” where our employees are at the heart of everything we do. We foster an equitable and fair workplace where ideas are welcomed, contributions are valued, and individuals are encouraged to grow both professionally and personally. Employees benefit from meaningful work, opportunities for development, and the chance to make a lasting impact on students’ lives every day.

At Ramapo College, we believe excellence is achieved through teamwork, respect, accountability, innovation, and a shared commitment to learning. Our all‑hands‑on deck culture requires leadership at all levels to ensure we achieve our mission, implement our goals, and invest in our future one student at a time. We are proud to offer a supportive environment that values well‑being and continuous improvement. We believe in being bold, being kind, and being good teammates, making Ramapo not just a place to work, but a great place to belong.

Ramapo College offers outstanding benefits through the New Jersey State Benefits system, generous PTO, professional development opportunities, wellness programs, tuition discounts for employees and their dependents, and much more.

POSITION TYPE/EXPECTED HOURS OF WORK:

This is a full‑time, managerial position and days of work and hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand. Note: This position is in the "NL" category of employment (non‑fixed work week), and individuals in this role have no claim or entitlement to time off or cash compensation for hours worked beyond their normal schedule. Compensatory time will not be granted for work done as an extension of the regular work day. It is the policy of the College to grant hour for hour compensatory time off, with advance approval, only when employees are required to work on a holiday. Time earned must be used within one fiscal year from the time it is earned.

Compensation:

Manager – D24 – Salary - $88,000-$107,000

Ramapo College of New Jersey is committed to considering qualified candidates who are legally authorized to work in the United States. Candidates who are currently authorized to work in the United States through a valid immigration status or employment authorization are encouraged to apply.Visa sponsorship may be considered for qualified candidates and positions, subject to applicable federal immigration laws and regulations.

Job Summary:

The Office of Employee Relations, Employee Relations Associate supports an Employee Relations (ER) strategy that results in effective and efficient service and support the College’s mission and vision; Serves as a direct report to the Executive Director of Employee Relations and Faculty Resources which reports to the Office of the Provost under the Teaching, Learning, and Growth (TLC) Core. This position manages all faculty and AFT professional staff personnel actions, prepares related calendars, training sessions and various contractual reporting requirements. The individual supports the development and implementation of policies and procedures and serves as the primary administrative contact for Employee Relations. Performs related work as required within the context of established College policies, and as directed by the Executive Director of Employee Relations and Faculty Resources. This position is primarily responsible for the planning and organizing of the Employee Relations Unit. Assists in the coordination of activities and projects for the Office of Employee Relations, the Teaching, Learning, and Growth Core (TLC) and other units within the College.

Job Duties

• Serves as the Employee Relations Associate in coordinating and monitoring the work of All-College Committees during the Tenure, Promotion, Career Development, Faculty Scholarship, Sabbatical, Salary Range Adjustment and the Professional Staff Merit Based Promotion Processes as well as the reappointment processes for faculty and staff.
• Responsible for organizing various programs to support communication efforts and information sharing among all College Schools.
• Provides accurate, courteous, and timely support in order to administer Personnel Processes for AFT Professional Staff Merit Based Promotion Program, Reappointments and the Annual Performance Assessment System (APAS); Faculty: Career Development, Promotions, Reappointment, Tenure, Sabbatical, Faculty Scholarship Funding, Professional Leaves, etc.
• Develops andrecommends goals, policies, and procedures in support of overall Employee Relations Unit administrative operations
• Responsible for the maintenance of pertinent data bases to track necessary APAS information and cycles.
• Establishes and maintains communication and cooperative working relationships with collegeadministrators, union officials, faculty, and staff
• Together with the Executive Director provides support to professional staff and faculty on personnel procedures and shares timely information with employees as required on pertinent policy, contractual, and procedural questions
• Working with the Executive Director monitors and interprets AFT Agreement clauses for changes and application to existing personnel actions and requests.
• Maintains databases (Banner) to track professional staff and faculty personnel information used to accurately and proactively schedule, record, and share administrative information with other administrators
• Extracts information from a number of systems to format andbuild databases to be able to retrieve data efficiently and produce a variety of reports
• Manages and maintains the Employee Relations web page (Assistant Web Master).
• Oversees the maintenance of personnel records in accordance with the AFT Agreement for approximately 200 full-time faculty and 200 professional staff.
• Ensures accurate record keeping regarding annual personnel actions, and historical files
• Supports the Executive Director to coordinate and collaborate with AFT, FA, FAEC, Deans, VPs, Office of the Provost and Office of the President administrators on personnel process matters
• Prepares correspondence, maintains files, schedules meeting dates/times, prepares and distributes notification letters, reviews minutes and maintains historical records
• Inputs new policies, procedures, contractual agreements, and legal updates into the online information system/web page.
• Oversees the preparation of ER related official correspondence for the Offices of the President and Provost, Local Union, (appointment notifications/recommendations for the following actions to include but not limited to Emeritus, Promotion, Reappointment, Retirement, Tenure,reassigned time, Professional Leaves, and stipends, etc.)
• Supports all Faculty Handbook activities associated with the maintenance, revision, coordination of the production and publishing
• Assists in the preparation of the Employee Relations Unit budget, i.e., Career Development, Remembrance Day, Tuition Assistance.
• Supports Academic Operations administrative function as required in the processing of coordinating overload payments, adjunct contracts, and special payments
• Collaborates with the Budget Office during the preparation of the ER annual budget proposal; coordinates budget change requests
• Reviews data for compilations of various State, Union, and College reports
• Maintains purchase orders, keeps up to date account balancesusing authorized systems (Adaptive, UniMarket) as required
• Under the direction of the Executive Director, drafts proposed policies/procedures, resolutions and Memorandum of Agreements (MOA)’s for review and adoption.
• Under the direction of the Executive Director, analyzes current faculty lines and recycled lines to determine total number of available faculty lines for upcoming academic year in coordination with the Provost and the Budget office.
• As required, consults with Internal Auditor regarding Iron Mountain records retention.
  • Under the direction of the Executive Director, prepares routine and complex faculty and professional staff salary calculations, statistical charts, reports, lists, memos, letters, calendars, etc.,
  • Under the direction of the Executive Director reviews activities from Governor’s Office of Employee Relations and/or union officials and supports required actions.
  • As required supports ER Executive Director during fact-finding investigations, preparation of investigative reports and scheduling of interviews with witnesses and subjects of investigation
  • Works closely with People Operations & Employee Resources staff for to support all AFT personnel activities.

REQUIREMENTS

Education

Graduation from an accredited college with a Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field. Master’s Degree is desirable but not required.

Experience

A minimum of 4 years (6 plus years preferred) professional experience in support of employee relations, labor relations or related field. Experience in higher education is preferable, other government, non‑profit or profit organizations may be considered.

Experience with Banner, Human Resources Information Systems and/or other software such as Microsoft Office 97 (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint), with ability to manage databases and extract information for various reports.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

• Exceptionalorganizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines simultaneously.
• Strongwritten and verbal communication skills, including the ability to draft correspondence, memoranda, reports, meeting materials, and other sensitive communications.
• Excellentinterpersonal and customer-service skills, with the ability to interact professionally with employees at all levels.
• Strongconfidentiality and information-management skills, particularly when handling personnel complaints, investigations, medical documentation, disciplinary matters, and other sensitive information.
• Strongresearch and information‑gathering skills.
• Strongediting, proofreading, and document preparation skills.
• Excellentattention to detail and accuracy.
• Strongdata management and tracking skills, including maintaining case logs, action‑item trackers, deadlines, calendaring and status reports.
• Proficiency withMicrosoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint, SharePoint, and other enterprise systems.
• Strongproblem‑solving and prioritization skills.
• Ability to prepare information and materials forsenior leadership, legal counsel, grievance meetings, investigations, and employee relations proceedings.
• Ability to establish and work effectively with all campus stakeholders (executives, managers, faculty, staff, union representatives, and others).
  • Ability to acquire considerable knowledge of the program or unit purpose, goals, and objectives.
  • Ability to acquire and adhere to knowledge of the college philosophy, goals, and organization.
  • Ability toexercise exceptional judgment and discretionwhen handling confidential and sensitive employee matters.
  • Ability to recognize matters that requireimmediate escalation to the Executive Director/VP or other appropriate authority.
  • Ability to work independently, anticipate executive and departmental needs, andtake initiative without requiring constant direction.
  • Ability to manage competing priorities in ahigh-volume, deadline‑driven environment.
  • Ability to maintain accurate and organized records associated with employee relations cases and activities.
  • Ability totrack complex cases, deadlines, investigations, grievances, meetings, and follow‑up actions.
  • Ability to prepare clear, accurate, and professional correspondence and documentation based on established guidelines and direction.
  • Ability to maintain strict confidentiality andprotect personally identifiable and personnel information.
  • Ability to interpret and apply established policies, procedures, and administrative guidelines.
  • Ability to support investigations and employee relations processeswithout compromising neutrality or confidentiality.
  • Ability to remain calm, professional, and objective when dealing with difficult or emotionally charged situations.
  • Ability to represent the Employee Relations office with ahigh degree of professionalism, credibility, and discretion.

EEO Statement:

Ramapo College is an Affiliated Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Ramapo has a long history of advocating, advising, and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. Examples can be found in its mission statement, strategic plans, degree and course offerings, community outreach programs, and other diversity programs. Ramapo’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is infused across all facets of the College; where the environment is welcoming, dedicated to social justice, respectful of freedom of expression, focused on educating and having an ongoing conversation regarding cultural competence and the benefits and importance of diversity.