Senior Employment Law Counsel — Hybrid (NYC)

Guardian Life Insurance; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 152,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Guardian Life Insurance seeks an Employment Law Counsel to serve as the number two Employment and Labor Counsel, reporting to the Head of Employment Law. You will provide practical, business-focused advice across employment matters, partnering with HR and business leaders to manage risk and advance Guardian’s priorities.

You are a senior enterprise advisor with deep expertise in ERISA plans, compensation, and incentive plans, capable of guiding senior leaders on complex matters while maintaining

Qualifications

• Juris Doctor degree required with active bar admission.
• Minimum of five (5) years of relevant employment-law experience in a large firm or in-house.
• Experience handling administrative matters and single-plaintiff litigation/arbitration.
• Strong oral and written communication and analytical skills.
• Ability to structure settlements and separation agreements balancing risk and business goals.

Responsibilities

• Partner with Head of Employment Law to lead enterprise-wide strategy on employment matters.
• Oversee responses to EEOC, DOL, and state agencies.
• Advise on organizational restructurings, WARN Act, and workforce changes.
• Counsel on AI/automation in hiring and performance, with bias risk mitigations.
• Lead employment and labor litigation strategy; manage outside counsel.

Skills

Oral and written communication

Negotiation

Analytical skills

Independent yet collaborative

AI literacy

MS Office

Westlaw

Harvey (AI tool)

Education

Juris Doctor

Active bar admission

NY bar admission preferred

Tools

Westlaw

Harvey

Job description

Guardian Life Insurance seeks an Employment Law Counsel to serve as the number two Employment and Labor Counsel, reporting to the Head of Employment Law. You will provide practical, business-focused advice across employment matters, partnering with HR and business leaders to manage risk and advance Guardian’s priorities.

You are a senior enterprise advisor with deep expertise in ERISA plans, compensation, and incentive plans, capable of guiding senior leaders on complex matters while maintaining