Job Summary

The City of Saskatoon is a place where you can build a career and make a difference in your community. As a municipal government, we offer a range of core public services such as roads, transit, parks, water, construction and fire to over 270,000 residents.
Are you a passionate HR professional looking to grow your career and stretch yourself as a leader in the field of labour relations? We’re offering an exciting opportunity to join our team as Labour Relations Manager. 
At the City of Saskatoon, you’ll experience an opportunity to build your career in an organization where People Matter. 
Reporting to the Director, Client & Advisory Services, the LR Manager works in fast paced, multi-union environment where they will be called upon to provide leadership and expertise in progressive labour and employee relations strategies while contributing to the development and implementation of best practices for the City of Saskatoon at large. 
Through your extensive technical and leadership experience, you will oversee a team of labour relations professionals. You’ll be a leader in developing collective bargaining strategies and act as a lead negotiator at the bargaining table.
What we offer:
•    Professional Development: Internal leadership development program,
•    No travel required – position responsibilities are limited within Saskatoon.
Competitive compensation and benefits package: 
•    Paid time off starting at 27 days (three weeks’ vacation and 12 scheduled days off) per year, vacation increasing with years of service, plus 13 recognized public holidays per year, 
•    Extended Health Care Benefits, 
•    Dental Care Benefits, 
•    Health Spending Account $500 annually, 
•    Short and long-term disability, 
•    General Superannuation Plan (Defined Benefit pension plan) with employer contributions.
Additional Benefits:
•    Tuition & Materials Reimbursement Program, 
•    Deferred Salary Leave Plan, 
•    Computer Purchase Plan, 
•    Employee Exercise & Sport Equipment Purchase Program, 
•    Employee & Family Assistance Program, 
•    Employee Wellness Subsidization Program (Leisure Card).

The role: 
•    Build a Culture of Collaboration: Champion people development and proactively contribute to a culture that supports a OneCity and OneHR approach where employees work together and collaborate across departments to provide outstanding practical and strategic human resource solutions, programs and services that enhance workplace culture, engagement and inclusion. 
•    Act and Communicate with Integrity: Support Human Resources in the provision of information and advice to employees, supervisors and managers, regarding human resource-related matters, in accordance with professional human resource practices, corporate policies and procedures, related collective agreements, labour legislation and regulations.
•    Develop strong working relationships: Work collaboratively with management, Union and other stakeholders to develop a positive working relationship based upon mutual respect, trust and confidence.
•    Collaborative negotiation: Investigate, represent and facilitate the resolution of disputes and grievances regarding interpretations of collective agreements, labour legislation and human resources policies and practices.
 

Duties & Responsibilities

1. Ensures the labour relations priorities, goals and service levels within the HR business plan are achieved. 
2. Oversees collective bargaining cycles and leads the development and preparation of mandates, strategies, costing, and bargaining with oversight from the Director. May act as the primary spokesperson during bargaining and arbitrations.
3. Partners with internal clients and peers to oversee and ensure effective advice and guidance is provided regarding the interpretation, compliance, administration and implementation of the Collective Agreements, and other policies or programs with a labour relations or employee relations impact.  
4. Oversees a team of labour relations professionals, including mentorship, coaching, professional development, hiring, and de-hiring while actively working to provide an engaging environment and plan for future workforce needs. 
5. Collaborates with other members of HR Leadership by providing professional advice and bringing forward trends gathered from labour relations activities and practices in the organization. 
6. Oversees the preparation and presentation of the City’s interests in arbitration hearings and other labour related legal proceedings. 
7. Consults with the City’s Solicitor’s Office regarding labour strategies, legislation or other applicable LR issues; develops and supports maintenance of legal advice repository.
8. Maintains effective working relationships with unions, solicitors, external agencies, and internal collaborators and stakeholders at all levels to provide quality services and resolve labour and employee issues. 
9. Develops change management and communications strategies to improve implementation of collective agreement, policy, program, or other changes. 
10. Provides training and special topic seminars in employee and labour relations based on business needs and service agreements.
11. Other related responsibilities as assigned. 
     

Qualifications

• Degree in commerce, business administration or a related field, and 8+ years of progressive HR experience, with experience in a unionized environment is required. A combination of equivalent education and experience may be considered. 
• Prior experience in a leadership capacity is required. 
• HR accreditation such as CPHR (Chartered Professionals in Human Resources) is considered an asset. 
• Ability to take initiative to deal and manage situations outside comfort zone, with the ability to prioritize and re-prioritize to achieve municipal objectives. 
• Ability to learn and adapt to various situations in areas with a high degree of ambiguity. 
• A proven track record of building relationships with senior leaders, with the ability to provide robust recommendations, coach, influence and drive change in pursuit of best practice.
• Business and political acumen, and human resources expertise coupled with critical thinking ability and a proven track record of collaborating and problem-solving complex matters with stakeholders where there is little or no precedent.
• Demonstrated experience in designing and implementing organization-wide change initiatives and the ability to develop, implement and manage change plans effectively.
• Highly developed communication skills, with the ability to effectively interact with and influence individuals in different disciplines and at different levels. 
• Ability to create and foster a learning environment and culture of sharing and collaboration.
• Possesses the ability to develop relationships at all levels, both internally and externally while having difficult conversations. 
• Proven leadership ability, including the ability to manage workflows, resolve conflicts, and promote engagement within a team. 
• Knowledge of municipal organizations, types of municipal occupations, and related functions. 
• Proven ability working in a complex multi-unionized environment to reduce typical business information silos to increase cooperation and communication and work more effectively across business functions.
• Ability to collaborate to ensure the highest quality in service delivery, and operational management.
• Knowledge and experience with large ERP systems and Microsoft Office.