Manager Employment Relations
People and Safety Directorate
Permanent, part-time (20 hours)
Love employee relations? Thrive on complexity? Looking for a role where your expertise genuinely shapes organisational direction?
At Otago Polytechnic we’re looking for a seasoned Employee Relations professional who can navigate the tricky stuff, influence senior leaders, take a strategic view and work in partnership with our kaimahi and union partners. This is a rare opportunity to work at the heart of people strategy, partnering with senior leaders to navigate complex employment issues, organisational change, industrial relations, and workforce consultation.
This is a role for someone who thrives in complexity, can untangle competing perspectives whilst supporting leaders to make confident, people focused decisions. And as a member of the People and Safety leadership team, you’ll be able to influence the future of work in an organisation committed to learners, communities, equity and innovation.
And the best part? It’s .5 FTE role offering professional challenge, meaningful impact, while maintaining the flexibility to enjoy everything else that matters to you.
Mō te tūraka mahi | About the role
As our principal employment relations expert, you will provide trusted advice on complex and high-risk employment matters while helping shape an employment environment that is fair, equitable, legally compliant, and aligned with our values.
Reporting to the Deputy Executive Director People and Safety, you will work closely with senior leaders, People and Culture Business Partners, unions, employee representatives, and external advisors. You'll be instrumental in managing employment risk, supporting organisational change initiatives, leading industrial relations activity, and building employment relations capability across the organisation.
Ko wai koe | About you
You’re probably someone who:
· Knows the New Zealand employment context inside and out
· Leads with professionalism, integrity and courage
· Builds trust quickly and isn’t afraid to provide a respectful challenge
· Thinks strategically but can still get into the operational detail when needed
· Understands that employment relations isn’t about winning arguments, it’s about finding sustainable solutions
· Believes fairness, equity and good process matter.
We’d love to hear from you if you have:
· A genuine commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and equitable outcomes.
· Extensive senior level Employment Relations experience
· A qualification in Employment Relations, HR, Business, Law or a related discipline
· Significant experience managing organisational change, workforce consultation and disputes resolution
· Experience working with unions and collective bargaining
· Excellent judgement and political nous
· Proven success advising on complex employment matters, organisational change and
· Experience developing employment frameworks, policies and governance practices
It will be a bonus if you have experience working in the tertiary sector but we know if you are a great Employee Relations practitioner you’ll have the ability to apply your experience wherever you are.
Ko wai mātou | About us as an organisation
At Te Kura Matatini ki Otago/Otago Polytechnic, we are committed to attracting, developing and retaining kaimahi (staff) who are passionate, creative, future-focused and dedicated to help set the direction for quality vocational and applied learning to meet tomorrow’s needs.
We are guided by our values and we are proud to be Rainbow Tick certified. We aspire to create a working environment that is inclusive and meets the aspirations of mana whenua ensuring equity for Māori and increasing access for all.
Tono ināianei | Apply now
Interested but want to know more? Reach out to our Deputy Executive Director, jo.mika-thomas@op.ac.nz.
For a position description or to apply please click on the link.
Applications close 5pm, Wednesday 14th of October
Applications for this role will take you to the advertisers site.
