Senior Employee Relations Advisor

Job Summary

Job Description

What is the opportunity?

As a Senior Employee Relations Advisor, you will perform a critical role in helping to strengthen the relationships that exist amongst employees and reinforce RBC's strong values-based culture that champions client first, collaboration, accountability, inclusion, and integrity.

You will make a difference by supporting executives, people managers and employees with a range of workplace issues including employee communications, employee engagement and performance, dispute resolutions and investigations, and the application of RBC's Code of Conduct and policies.

In collaboration with business leaders and functional partners, and in alignment with RBC's Leadership Model, you proactively identify workplace issues to provide solutions which strengthen RBC's culture

What will you do?

You will provide support in several primary areas within your assigned portfolio, including :

Employee conduct & risk culture

• Provide expert advice to ensure consistent application of RBC's Code of Conduct and compliance with all policy, regulatory requirements and applicable federal and provincial employment and human rights legislation.
• Oversee investigations under RBC's Respectful Workplace Policy and Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention Standard.
• Identify and report on trends and emerging issues, including understanding the root cause of misconduct.

Individual and collective high performance

• Provide expert advice on performance and attendance management to support a highly engaged and effective workforce.
• Identify issues and mitigants to address people impacts arising from operating model changes and organizational redesign to support exceptional client experiences and operational excellence.

Relationship management

• Manage complex cases and act as first point of escalation for Employee Relations Advisors on complex matters arising in their portfolio.
• Build and maintain key relationships with businesses and functions, influencing and negotiating while being viewed as a true partner.
• Work closely with the Employee Relations Director or Senior Director on complex and sensitive matters and broader business-related initiatives and projects.

Operational excellence

• Support Employee Relations senior management with the development of resources, guidelines, processes and tools to facilitate Employee Relations' ability to provide advice at scale through consistent case management.
• Manage risk and improve manager and employee experience through well informed, fair and transparent decisions which place employees at the centre and focus on RBC Values while making recommendations for continuous improvement.
• Champion HR-led initiatives that strengthen the relationships between RBC and its employees..

Leadership

• Provide coaching and advice to Employee Relations Advisors regarding management of matters reported through various Speak Up Channels.
• Foster an open environment within Employee Relations that drives a high-performance culture.

What do you need to succeed?

Must-haves :

• Minimum 7+ years direct experience in Employee Relations and / or Employment Law.
• Post-secondary education (preferred focus in Human Resources or Employment Law).
• Demonstrated and applied knowledge of Canadian employment law & regulations (both federal & provincial including human rights, accommodation, whistleblowing, and workplace standards / requirements).
• Proven experience aligning and integrating risk management with business and HR strategy.
• Strategic thinking, analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Experience establishing and managing relationships with executives and senior level stakeholders.
• Ability to drive change in unfamiliar or ambiguous circumstances, to handle confidential information and escalate issues when appropriate.
• Excellent organizational skills, able to juggle and prioritize multiple tasks simultaneously while delivering on commitments.
• Strong sense of accountability, high-quality judgement and sound decision-making.
• Outstanding communication skills in written and verbal form; extensive public speaking, training, and / or leadership communication skills.
• Significant experience in conducting and / or managing workplace investigations.

Nice-to-have :

• Experience in an in-house legal department or law firm.
• Called to the Bar of a Canadian province (or equivalent).
• Bilingual (English / French).

What's in it for you?

We thrive on the challenge to be our best and work together to deliver trusted advice to help our clients thrive and communities prosper.

We care about each other, reaching our potential, making a difference to our communities, and achieving success that is mutual.

• A comprehensive Total Rewards Program including flexible benefits and eligibility for bonuses, and competitive compensation.
• Work in a dynamic, collaborative, progressive, and high-performing team.
• Opportunities to take on progressively greater scope of work.

Job Skills

Employee and Labor Relations, Equal Employment Opportunity Law, HR Legal, Human Resources Consulting, Human Resources Operations, Human Resources Policies, Interpersonal Relationship Management, Knowledge Organization, Organizational Savvy and Politics