Employment Counsel

Green Thumb; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 175,000 - 195,000; Full time

Job summary

Green Thumb seeks an experienced in-house employment attorney to join our Legal team in Chicago. You will partner with People and business leaders across multi-state operations, delivering practical guidance on hiring, performance, leave, accommodations, investigations, and policy development.

Requirements include a J.D. from an accredited school and 6+ years of employment law experience, with in-house work preferred.

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and bar admission in the applicable state.
• 6+ years of employment law experience, preferably in-house.
• Experience navigating multi-state employment issues, including cannabis industry knowledge a plus.

Responsibilities

• Advise on day-to-day employment matters, leaves, investigations, and policy development.
• Lead EEOC charge handling and agency responses.
• Collaborate with business partners to align legal guidance with company goals.
• Draft and review employment agreements, offer letters, and severance templates.
• Deliver practical training on high-risk employment topics for managers.

Skills

Employment law

In-house experience

Stakeholder management

Legal writing

Risk assessment

Education

J.D. from an accredited law school

Tools

Regulatory compliance

Job description

The Role

GTI is seeking an experienced in-house employment attorney to join our Legal team. In this role, you'll serve as a trusted partner to the People team and business leaders across GTI's multi-state operations – providing practical, business-focused guidance across the full employee lifecycle, from day-to-day employment matters and EEOC charges to complex leave and accommodation issues. The ideal candidate brings strong employment law experience, a solutions-oriented mindset, and the ability to build trusted partnerships across the organization – delivering clear, actionable legal guidance that enables the business to move quickly while protecting the company.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the dedicated employment law advisor to GTI’s People team and other business partners across all multi-state retail, production, and corporate operations, providing practical, risk-calibrated guidance across the full employee lifecycle – from hiring and onboarding through performance management, compensation, accommodations, and separations.
• Advise on internal workplace investigations involving employee misconduct, discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, ensuring outcomes are consistent, lawful, and aligned with GTI’s values.
• Own GTI’s EEOC charge and administrative agency complaint process end-to-end – drafting position statements, coordinating fact-gathering, responding to agency requests, and driving matters to resolution prior to litigation.
• Collaborate closely with the Associate General Counsel – Litigation when matters escape beyond the administrative stage, ensuring seamless handoff and consistent strategy on active employment-related cases.
• Serve as a trusted legal advisor on complex employee benefits escalations, interpreting applicable laws and regulations, counseling cross-functional partners, and identifying emerging legal risks requiring further action.
• Advise the People team on complex leave of absence and reasonable accommodation matters across GTI’s operating states, ensuring consistent application of federal and state requirements.
• Partner with the People team to proactively manage risk, draft and maintain employment policies, and advise on workforce strategy, employee relations, and all aspects of employment law compliance.
• Review form employment agreements, offer letters, separation and severance agreements, and the templates People and Talent Acquisition teams use day-to-day.
• Design and deliver practical employment law training for managers and the People team, covering high-risk areas such as terminations, accommodations, investigations, and wage and hour compliance.
• Collaborate with Assistant General Counsel – Labor, as needed, to support GTI’s labor relations strategy and union matters.
• Stay current on federal, state, and local employment law developments across GTI’s operating markets; manage compliance plans in response to legislative changes and translate developments into actionable guidance for business partners.
• Partner with the People team and other business leaders to spot early warning signs across complaints, investigations, and exits, and drive corrective action where possible.
• Own and maintain the employee handbook and all state-specific addenda, ensuring policies remain current, legally compliant, and reflective of regulatory changes across all jurisdictions in which GTI operates.

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and active bar admission in the state where the attorney resides, or eligibility to practice as registered in-house counsel.
• 6+ years of employment law experience, with in-house experience preferred.
• Strong working knowledge of employment laws – including discrimination, employee leave, wage and hour, and employee relations – under federal, state, and local frameworks.
• Experience navigating multi-state compliance complexity; cannabis industry or other highly regulated industry experience a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to partner effectively with outside counsel.
• Excellent legal analysis, reasoning, and writing skills – including the ability to quickly synthesize facts and law to make sound decisions under time pressure.
• Clear, concise, and persuasive communicator, both orally and in writing.
• Ability to work independently, anticipate business needs, and take a proactive, situationally aware approach.
• Strong judgment and ability to assess risk, take firm positions, and protect the company’s interests.
• Superior interpersonal skills – able to build relationships with diverse stakeholders, collaborate across a geographically dispersed Legal team, and work effectively with members of the People team and business leaders.
• Comfortable operating with agility and urgency in a high-growth, fast-paced environment with competing priorities.
• Must understand and comply with the rules, regulations, policies, and procedures of Green Thumb, including cannabis-specific laws and regulations across all operating markets.

Additional Requirements

• Must pass any and all required background checks
• Must be and remain compliant with all legal or company regulations for working in the industry

The pay range is competitive and based on experience, qualifications, and/or location of the role. Positions may be eligible for a discretionary annual incentive program driven by organization and individual performance.

Green Thumb Pay Range

$175,000 - $195,000 USD

Voluntary Demographic Questions

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below race and gender self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirelyvoluntary.

As set forth in Green Thumb's Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Although GTI is not a federal contractor and therefore, not under compliance mandates to report on the percentage of its workforce that is comprised of employees with disabilities or Veterans, we provide applicants and employees with a voluntary option to confidentially self-identify as a person with a disability or a Veteran as a part of our commitment to diversity and inclusion. Identifying yourself as a Veteran or individual with a disability is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer will be maintained confidentially and not be seen by selecting officials or anyone else involved in making personnel decisions. Completing the form will not negatively impact you in any way, regardless of whether you have self-identified in the past.