Employee Relations Specialist

Job Description

The Employee Relations Specialist is responsible for managing employee relations inquiries and investigations within the County. This includes handling employee grievances and investigations, reasonable accommodations requests and the interactive process, mediating conflicts between employees and/or management, delivering training on performance management and unlawful harassment, and resolving complex issues within departments. This role contributes to the development of best practices and play a vital role in enhancing the employee experience and retention across the organization.

• Meeting and engaging with employees to discuss inquiries, grievances, investigations, accommodations and other employee relations issues ensuring a responsive and supportive HR presence.
• Logging and recording details of all investigations and accommodation requests.
• Compiling detailed reports and memorandums that document findings from inquiries and investigations outlining recommendations, next steps, and resolutions.
• Mediate conflicts between employees and management to foster a positive work environment and resolve disputes effectively.
• Delivering training sessions focused on preventing unlawful harassment in the workplace, promoting awareness, and ensuring compliance with legal standards.
• Leading the interactive process for accommodation requests, working closely with employees to understand their needs and ensure legal compliance.
• Serve as the subject matter expert on federal and state discrimination laws, including but not limited to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the ADA. Provide guidance to employees and management regarding these regulations and related policies ensuring consistent application and understanding across the organization.
• Reviewing HR and departmental policies and procedures and providing recommendations to leadership to ensure policies and procedures to reflect current laws, regulations, and County practices.
• Foster strong collaborative relationships with HR colleagues and other departmental stakeholders to ensure a unified approach to Employee Relations and HR initiatives.
• Participate in HR projects and initiatives that impact employee relations, contributing to the overall improvement of HR services and the employee experience.

• Present findings from investigations to HR leadership and other relevant parties.
• Lead training sessions on topics such as unlawful harassment and performance management.
• Represent the Employee Relations team in departmental meetings, sharing insights, updates, and best practices.

Grade

The grade for this position is C421. Salary will be dependent on education and experience.

Effective 4/11/2023, this position is eligible for the Employee Referral Program.

• Bachelor’s degree in human resources, business administration, finance, or a closely related field (psychology, legal studies or labor relations degree preferred);
• Three years of specialized human resources experience or one year of general human resources experience;
• Or, an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job such as those listed above.

• Workplace Investigation certification
• Two years of employee or labor relations experience
• One year of mediation experience

For information related to position-specific essential duties, knowledge and skills, and physical requirements, please note:
The class specifications listed on this website are not the official class specifications for Gwinnett County and are subject to change.

Gwinnett County is an Equal Opportunity Employer. For more information regarding our hiring process, please consult the Hiring Process and FAQs provided by the County.

Gwinnett County is committed to creating a diverse workforce. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information (including sex), race, color, national origin (including ancestry), gender (identity and expression), sexual orientation, age, marital status, familial status (including pregnancy), disability, military or veteran status, religion, political affiliation, immigration status, homeless status, or any other category protected by law.