Labor and Employee Relations Consultant – Human Resources

HealthPartners; Bloomington (IL); Hybrid; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

HealthPartners is seeking a Labor and Employee Relations Consultant to provide strategic advice on labor and employee relations. The role involves managing grievance handling, contract administration, and conducting investigations, requiring extensive experience in human resources. The consultant will work with leadership to ensure compliance with labor laws and foster positive employee relations.

Qualifications

• Minimum of seven years of experience in human resources and/or labor relations.
• Advanced knowledge of FMLA, ADAA, Title VII.
• Experience in collective bargaining agreements and grievance handling.

Responsibilities

• Manage the Employer’s contract administration and grievance handling.
• Conduct and advise on investigations of colleague misconduct.
• Serve as a technical resource regarding labor management committees.

Skills

Contract interpretation

Grievance handling

Negotiation

Investigations

Employee relations

Education

Bachelor’s degree in industrial relations or human resources management

Master’s degree in industrial relations or related Human Resources course of study

Job description

HealthPartners is currently hiring for aLabor and Employee Relations Consultant – Human Resources. The consultant acts as a technical and strategic advisor on labor relations, employee relations, and Human Resources compliance issues. They work independently, consulting with leadership and peers on matters with strategic implications or those that may set precedents.

The Labor and Employee Relations Consultant will be part of a team of five consultants, reporting to the Senior Director of Employee and Labor Relations. They will collaborate with business and clinical leaders to support HealthPartners' medical group, corporate shared services, health plan, and institute, which includes approximately 7,630employees.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in industrial relations or human resources management (six years of professional human resources experience may be substituted for the degree)
• Minimum of seven years of experience in human resources and/or labor relations with a minimum of four years administering FMLA, ADAA, and Title VII, administering collective bargaining agreements, grievance handling, and/or investigations and employee relations, performance management, and policy administration and interpretation
• Advanced knowledge of contract interpretation and administration, collective bargaining, grievance handling, and/or conducting and evaluating investigations, FMLA, ADAA, and Title VII, at-will terminations employee relations, performance management, and policy administration and interpretation

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in industrial relations or related Human Resources course of study
• Previous labor negotiation and/or arbitration experience

Hours/Location:

• M-F; Days
• May work remotely but may need to be on-site on an extremely limited basis.

Responsibilities:

Contract administration

• Manage the Employer’s complex contract administration philosophy.
• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding contract administration.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding contract administration.

Grievance Handling

• Manage the Employer’s grievance handling philosophy.
• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource regarding grievances and grievance handling process to leaders.
• Conduct meetings and respond to the final step and system-wide grievances.
• Review and approve settlement offers made by leaders at the earlier steps of the grievance procedure.
• Negotiate settlements at the final step of the grievance procedure and pre-arbitration.
• Lead grievance mediation process.
• Work with outside counsel to oversee the arbitration process.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding grievance handling process.

Negotiations

• May lead special negotiations.
• Negotiate Letters of Understanding
• May participate in preparation for Local 12 and SEIU negotiations.
• May participate in Local 12 and SEIU negotiations.
• May lead and participate in strike planning.

Relationship with Union Business Representatives

• Represent the Employer to Business Representatives regarding system-wide issues.
• Maintain complex relationships with Business Representatives
• Implement the Employer’s philosophy regarding relationship with Business Representatives
• Serves as technical and strategic resource regarding building and maintaining positive relationships with Business Representatives

Labor Management Committees

• Manage the Employer’s philosophy regarding labor management committee process.
• Represent the Employer on system-wide and local labor management committees.
• Serves as expert technical and strategic resource regarding labor management committees.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding participation on department labor management committees.

Policies and Procedure

• Serve as an expert technical and strategic resource regarding the Employer’s policies and procedures to leaders, and the Human Resources Department
• Maintain tools and resources regarding the Employer’s policies and procedures.

Employee Relations

• Manage colleague complaints and concerns (outside the union grievance process), which may include:
• Conduct investigations and/or advise leaders regarding investigations.
• Advise leaders colleagues to attempt to resolve the colleagues’ concerns.

Investigations

• Conduct and/or advise leaders regarding investigations including complex, high liability, or high-risk investigations of colleague misconduct, poor performance, and allegations of discrimination as defined by federal, state, or local laws/regulation.
• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding conducting investigations.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding conducting investigations.

Americans with Disability Act as Amended

• Conduct complicated and high risk or high liability investigations/review complaints and/or advise leaders regarding allegations of potential non-compliance with ADAA.
• Lead and/or advise leaders regarding the interactive process and/or conduct the interactive process.
• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding ADAA.

At-Will Terminations

• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding at-will terminations.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding at-will terminations.

Unemployment Insurance

• Manage the Employer’s philosophy regarding unemployment insurance process.
• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding unemployment insurance process and response techniques.
• Represent the Employer on complex unemployment cases.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding unemployment.

Regulatory Laws and Regulations

• Serve as expert technical and strategic resource to leaders regarding FMLA, ESST, ADAA, NLRA, Title VII, FLSA (in conjunction with HR Total Rewards), ADEA, and other employment and labor laws.
• Maintain tools and resources regarding FMLA, ESST, ADAA, NLRA, Title VII, FLSA (in conjunction with HR Total Rewards), ADEA, and other employment and labor laws.

Training

• Serve as a content expert in developing courses, program, and educational opportunities for leaders.
• Present select training for management regarding labor and employee relations.