Senior Employee Relations Specialist

Empower Pharmacy; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Empower Pharmacy in Houston, TX seeks a Senior Employee Relations Specialist to strengthen organizational effectiveness. You will own sensitive investigations, advise leaders on employment actions, and ensure compliant practices across a hyper-growth 503A/503B environment.

The role balances business needs with employee experience and legal compliance. Responsibilities include managing investigations, leave administration, and accommodations while partnering with UNUM and executives to sustain

Qualifications

• Experience leading sensitive workplace investigations.
• Strong knowledge of EEO, ADA, FMLA, PWFA.
• Ability to advise leaders on performance and discipline.

Responsibilities

• Lead sensitive investigations with thorough documentation and defensible resolutions.
• Advise leaders on performance management, disciplinary actions, and terminations.
• Ensure compliance with federal/state employment laws and company policies.

Job description

Empower Pharmacy is a visionary healthcare company dedicated to making quality, affordable medication accessible to millions of patients nationwide. As the nation's most advanced 503A compounding pharmacy and FDA-registered 503B outsourcing facility, we're redefining what's possible in personalized medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing. We're proud to be recognized as one of Houston's fastest-growing private companies and ranked #116 in Healthcare & Medical on the Inc. 5000 List for 2025.

Our strength is built on four core values: People, Quality, Service, and Innovation. Guided by these principles, we've created a uniquely integrated healthcare platform powered by advanced technology, operational excellence, and a relentless commitment to patient care. From manufacturing and quality control to distribution and customer experience, our teams work together to raise industry standards, expand access to critical medications, and improve outcomes for patients and providers across the country.

At Empower, joining our team means more than starting a new role. It means becoming part of a mission-driven organization that's transforming healthcare at scale. We invest deeply in our people, encourage bold thinking, and create opportunities for growth, leadership, and innovation at every level. Your ideas matter here, your development is supported, and the work you do has a direct impact on the lives of millions.

If you thrive in a fast-moving, purpose-driven environment where innovation, collaboration, and ambition come together, Empower Pharmacy is the place for you. Let's transform healthcare together.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Senior Employee Relations Specialist strengthens organizational effectiveness by resolving complex workplace matters, advising leaders, and ensuring fair, consistent employment practices across Empower Pharmacy. Operating in a hyper-growth, highly regulated 503A/503B environment, this role owns sensitive investigations, employee relations case management, leave administration, and accommodation processes while balancing business needs, employee experience, and legal compliance. The specialist translates employment regulations and company policies into practical guidance, strengthens leadership accountability, and identifies patterns that inform preventive action. Success requires strategic thinking, disciplined execution, sound judgment, discretion, and the agility to navigate evolving business priorities. Through effective cross-functional partnerships, accurate documentation, and proactive risk identification, this role supports operational continuity, reinforces a respectful workplace, and enables leaders to make timely, defensible decisions that sustain organizational performance and employee trust.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

Employee Relations and Investigations

• Complex Investigations: Lead sensitive workplace investigations involving misconduct, policy violations, interpersonal conflict, and employee complaints, ensuring timely fact-finding, objective analysis, thorough documentation, and defensible resolutions.
• Conflict Resolution: Resolve complex employee relations matters through structured interventions, balanced assessments, and practical recommendations that protect employee trust, reinforce accountability, and minimize organizational risk.
• Performance Guidance: Advise leaders on performance management, corrective actions, disciplinary decisions, and terminations, ensuring consistent application of policies, appropriate documentation, and compliance with applicable employment requirements.

Employment Compliance and Risk Management

• Regulatory Compliance: Interpret and apply federal and state employment requirements, including EEO, ADA, FMLA, and PWFA, to support compliant decisions and reduce employment-related exposure.
• Case Documentation: Maintain accurate, confidential records of investigations, corrective actions, accommodation requests, and employee relations cases, ensuring documentation supports consistent decisions and legal compliance.
• Risk Assessment: Identify emerging employee relations risks, evaluate policy application and workplace practices, and recommend corrective measures that strengthen organizational consistency and operational stability.

Leave Administration and Accommodations

• Leave Administration: Manage the full life cycle of employee leave requests, including FMLA, parental leave, and discretionary leave, coordinating timely determinations, communications, and documentation.
• Accommodation Management: Facilitate ADAAA interactive processes by evaluating medical documentation, assessing reasonable accommodation options, and partnering with stakeholders to identify compliant, practical solutions.
• Vendor Coordination: Partner with UNUM, employees, and business leaders to coordinate leave and accommodation cases, resolve administrative issues, and support accurate, timely case management.

Leadership Advisory and Organizational Effectiveness