Senior Labor Relations Representative

Cleveland-Cliffs; Butler Township (OH); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plan

Education assistance

Paid time off

Job summary

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. is seeking a Senior Labor Relations Representative to act as a strategic partner to manufacturing operations and HR leadership.

This on-site role will manage labor relations within a unionized environment, including contract administration, grievance handling, and bargaining support. You will interpret the CBA, guide leaders on contract provisions and past practices, and coordinate with legal and HR for complex issues.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in HR, Labor Relations, Business Administration, or related field.
• 7-10 years of progressive labor relations experience, preferably in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience handling grievances, investigations, arbitrations, and labor-management disputes.
• Experience supporting or leading collective bargaining negotiations.
• Strong knowledge of labor laws and labor relations practices.
• Strong analytical, negotiation, conflict resolution, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to influence leaders and build credibility across organizational levels.
• Availability to support a 24/7 manufacturing operation.

Responsibilities

• Interpret, administer, and ensure compliance with the CBA.
• Provide guidance to operations leaders on labor contract provisions and past practices.
• Identify labor relations trends and recommend proactive strategies.
• Conduct investigations related to labor relations concerns.
• Lead grievance investigations and responses with timely resolution.
• Prepare and present cases during grievance hearings/arbitration.
• Coordinate with legal counsel, HR, and business leaders on complex issues.
• Support labor negotiations through prep, research, proposal development, and bargaining strategy.
• Participate in union negotiations and help develop labor agreement language.
• Coach and train supervisors on labor relations principles and outcomes.
• Promote positive employee and labor-management relationships.
• Ensure compliance with NLRA and other regulations.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Labor relations

Grievance investigations

Arbitration

Contract negotiations

CBA interpretation

Negotiation

Analytical skills

Conflict resolution

Influence leaders

Education

Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Labor Relations, Business Administration, or related field

Job description

Location: Butler, PA

Cleveland-Cliffs, Butler Works is seeking an experienced Senior Labor Relations Representative to serve as a strategic partner to manufacturing operations and Human Resources leadership. This role is responsible for managing labor relations activities within a unionized manufacturing environment, including contract administration, grievance management, collective bargaining support, dispute resolution, and labor strategy development.

Summary of Responsibilities:

• Interpret, administer, and ensure compliance with collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
• Provide guidance and consultation to operations leaders regarding labor contract provisions, work rules, past practices, and labor relations matters.
• Identify labor relations trends and recommend proactive strategies to mitigate risk and improve labor-management relations.
• Conduct investigations related to labor relations concerns and recommend corrective actions as appropriate.
• Lead grievance investigations and responses, ensuring timely and effective resolution.
• Prepare and present cases during grievance hearings arbitration proceedings.
• Coordinate with legal counsel, HR, and business leaders on complex labor relations issues.
• Support labor negotiations through preparation, research, proposal development, and bargaining strategy.
• Participate in negotiations with union representatives and assist in developing labor agreement language.
• Coach and provide training to supervisors and managers on labor relations principles, contract interpretation, progressive discipline, employee communications, and conflict management.
• Promote positive employee and labor-management relationships through communication and collaboration initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local labor laws, including the National Labor Relations Act and other applicable regulations.
• Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Labor Relations, Business Administration, or related field.
• 7-10 years of progressive labor relations experience, preferably in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience handling grievances, investigations, arbitrations, and labor-management disputes.
• Experience supporting or leading collective bargaining negotiations.
• Strong knowledge of labor laws and labor relations practices.
• Strong analytical, negotiation, conflict resolution, and problem‑solving skills.
• Ability to influence leaders and build credibility across all organizational levels.
• Availability as needed to support a 24/7 manufacturing operation.

Preferred Qualifications:

• PHR/SPHR or SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP certification.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. is the largest flat‑rolled steel company and the largest iron ore pellet producer in North America. The Company is vertically integrated from mined raw materials, direct reduced iron, and ferrous scrap to primary steelmaking and downstream finishing, stamping, tooling, and tubing. We offer an excellent total compensation package including competitive pay with variable compensation opportunity, health insurance, retirement plan, educationassistance, paid time off and more.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please send an e‑mail to [e-mail] or call 1-[phone] and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. Do not email your application materials to this email address. Application materials sent to this email address will not be considered.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. is an equal opportunity employer – M/F/Veteran/Disability. We are a drug‑free workplace and conduct pre‑employment screening as a condition of employment.