NA Employee Relations Specialist

NA Employee Relations Specialist

Job Description

You’re not the person who will settle for just any role. Neither are we. Because we’re out to create Better Care for a Better World, and that takes a certain kind of person and teams who care about making a difference. Here, you’ll bring your professional expertise, talent, and drive to building and managing our portfolio of iconic, ground-breaking brands. In this role, you’ll help us deliver better care for billions of people around the world. It starts with YOU. 

The Employee Relations (ER) Specialist is responsible for conducting high‑quality workplace investigations, advising leaders on employee conduct and performance matters, and driving consistent, fair, and compliant practices across North America. The role partners closely with Legal, Ethics & Compliance, Global Security, Talent Business Partners (TBPs), and site leadership to deliver timely, thorough outcomes that reduce risk and strengthen a respectful, inclusive culture. The ER Specialist will serve as a trusted advisor and investigator, helping leaders and employees navigate complex workplace issues with integrity and care.

The ideal candidate has strong communication and interpersonal skills, demonstrates an ability to earn trust, dive deep, and work successfully across a broad spectrum of employee and labor relations issues and business challenges.

In this role, you will:

Scope & Impact

• Manage an assigned ER caseload end‑to‑end (intake through closure), including investigations into alleged Code of Conduct, policy, and workplace conduct violations; deliver well‑reasoned findings and clear, defensible documentation.

• Partner with leaders to address performance and conduct issues using coaching, counseling, and progressive discipline; ensure accurate, timely documentation in the approved case management systems.

• Support the organization’s threat management response by escalating risk indicators, coordinating with Global Security and Legal, and helping implement GPO‑led mitigation steps that safeguard employees and operations.

• Provide day‑to‑day ER advisory support to TBPs and people leaders; promote consistency, equity, and adherence to company policies and employment laws.

• Identify trends in case data and recommend practical policy or process improvements to enhance employee experience and reduce future risk.

Responsibilities

Investigation & Case Management

• Own individual investigation workflow: develop investigation plans, conduct impartial interviews, analyze evidence, determine findings, and prepare clear, complete reports with supporting exhibits.

• Collaborate with Legal, Ethics & Compliance, and other stakeholders on complex or high-risk cases.

• Ensure confidentiality and discretion in handling sensitive employee information and workplace concerns.

Advisory & Coaching

• Serve as a trusted ER advisor to leaders and TBPs on conduct, performance management, investigations, accommodations, and related ER matters; calibrate recommendations to business risk and cultural impact.

• Partner with Legal, Ethics & Compliance, Global Security, and site leadership to ensure coordinated, timely responses to sensitive issues and threat scenarios.

• Communicate investigation status and outcomes appropriately; provide pragmatic, actionable recommendations (e.g., corrective action, policy/process updates, training).

• Partner with TBPs and leaders to address performance concerns early, ensuring alignment with company values and expectations.

• Support the development and execution of performance improvement plans, coaching leaders through difficult conversations and documentation.

Policy, Compliance & Risk Management

• Apply and help reinforce standardized investigative methods and documentation practices for Code of Conduct matters and other ER cases.

• Ensure fair and consistent application of company policies and progressive discipline guidelines; record all actions in approved systems per policy.

• Drive revisions to people policies and practices to foster a fair, inclusive, and compliant work environment.

• Maintain working knowledge of applicable federal, state, and local employment laws (e.g., EEO, ADA, FMLA) and escalate legal risk appropriately.

Strategic Project & Continuous Improvement

• Analyze case trends, root causes, and hotspots; translate insights into prevention strategies, training topics, and policy/process improvements.

• Contribute to ER training (e.g., investigation fundamentals, documentation disci