Senior HR Advisor: Employee Relations

Senior HR Advisor: Employee Relations
Human Resources
Full-Time
Fixed term, 12 months
£37,210 per annum
Application Deadline: 15 December 2021

The HR department at the British Museum is evolving. We have recently introduced a business partnering model to enable the provision of strategic and operational HR advice to the leadership and management teams of the British Museum and the British Museum Company. We have identified a need for an additional role to help our team manage a varied portfolio of employee relations casework and to play a leading role in a process of continuous review and improvement related to how we manage cases.

We also have an exciting new opportunity to join our team in the role of Employee Engagement Manager.

We are also recruiting for two Administrator fixed term roles to help review our filing systems and help to reorganize our filing post lockdown and furlough.

About the roles

Senior HR Advisor: Employee Relations

As our Senior HR Advisor: Employee Relations you will be filling a vital role within our HR Operations team during this time of change and improvement. You will support managers and employees by providing high-quality, consistent and effective HR advice in relation to Employee Relations casework and in pursuit of the resolution of people management issues. You will also play a key role in building the capacity of managers and employees to resolve those issues and you will have the opportunity to support the development and delivery of HR objectives as well as the delivery of exciting HR projects and initiatives.

Key Areas of Responsibility will include:

• Providing advice and managing employee relations cases including disciplinary, grievance, capability and attendance from start to finish.
• Acting as the coordinator within the HR team for Employment Tribunal claims to support in-house and external legal teams.
• Ensuring that decisions made by managers are fair, reasonable and consistent.

• Supporting change management initiatives.
• Ensuring that all relevant paperwork and documentation is produced and managed to the highest professional standards.
• Reviewing the approach to casework management across the HR team to ensure consistency of approach and to enable a process of continuous improvement.

As part of our HR Operations team you will be able to demonstrate your experience of working in previous relevant HR roles and of effectively resolving complex employee relations casework. You will be CIPD qualified or able to demonstrate equivalent knowledge and skills gained through experience and you will need to bring strong knowledge and understanding of employment law to the position You will be able to build positive and productive working relationships and to quickly and effectively develop an understanding of the needs of your stakeholders. You will also be able to show evidence of working effectively to set processes and deadlines and taking the initiative to make efficiencies and improvements to ways of working.

Employee Engagement Manager

The Employee Engagement Manager will lead on all matters relating to employee engagement and diversity as well as managing and developing the way we engage with our employees and their representatives (trade unions).

Key areas of responsibility will include:

• Supporting the design, development and delivery of the Employee Engagement elements of our HR Strategy, to include responsibility for Internal Communications, Employee Recognition and Sustainability.
• Contributing HR expertise to engagement projects and initiatives, ensuring compliance with external and internal requirements.
• Maintaining and developing mechanisms for measuring and analysing levels of employee engagement; taking responsibility for ensuring plans are developed in response to findings and implementing those plans to time and budget.
• Acting as the first point of contact in engagements with trade unions; maintaining positive partnerships, arranging and setting agendas for relevant consultative and negotiation committee meetings, ensuring on-going compliance with recognition and supporting the development of relevant strategies.
• Maintaining and developing HR policies and procedures to ensure compliance with changing external requirements and consistency with best practice.

You will have previous experience in an HR role, specifically managing the development and delivery of successful employee engagement programmes and initiatives. An ability to balance conflicting demands and priorities is essential as is proven experience of managing and resolving complex problems across a wide range of disciplines. You will also need to bring experience of working with trade unions or employee representative groups to the role.

Senior HR Administrator: Projects

As a Senior HR Administrator you would be responsible for managing and overseeing a project to view the status of elements of the records management and associated administrative functions of the HR team. The project will also review, recommend and implement a process for resolving any records management issues experienced as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Key Areas of Responsibility:

• Complete an audit and develop a map of current records management approaches and structures, with a view to optimising processes and systems.
• Work with the HR Business Partner and Head of HR Operations to identify the scale and scope of administrative and systems backlog generated through the period of the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Devise and implement a plan for tackling the administrative and systems backlog.
• Review opportunities for improvements to future administrative processes and records management, informed by the learning from resolving the backlog.

• Motivate, develop and line manage an HR Administrator to ensure the provision of timely, project focused and accurate administrative support.

HR Administrator: Projects

As our HR Administrator your role is to work as part of the HR team providing support to a project that will review the status of some of the records management and associated administrative functions of the HR team. The project will also review, recommend and implement a process for resolving any records management issues experienced as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Key Areas of Responsibility:

Project:

• Support the Senior HR Administrator for the project in completing an audit and developing a map of current records management approaches and structures, with a view to optimising processes and systems.
• Support the creation and implementation of a plan to tack any administrative and systems backlogs.
• Review opportunities for improvements to future administrative processes and records management, informed by the learning from resolving the backlog.

Processes and Procedures:

• Prepare paperwork and communications including employment references and contract extensions.
• Ensure that DBS renewals are carried out in line with the Museum's procedures and legal requirements for employees involved in secure cargo transportation.

About the British Museum:

Founded in 1753, the British Museum's remarkable collection spans over two million years of human history and culture. The Museum is one of the leading visitor attractions with over six million visitors in 2017 and its world-famous collection includes the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon sculptures, Egyptian mummies, the Admonitions Scroll, and the Amaravati sculptures.

The Museum adheres to the HMG Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) requirements for all staff at the British Museum.

The Museum supports a diverse workplace and offers a competitive benefits package including:

• Membership of the civil service pension scheme
• Free entry to a wide range of museums and exhibitions
• Participation in private and public Museum activities, including talks by leading curators from around the world and behind-the-scenes opportunities to learn how museums care for and manage their extraordinary collections
• Generous annual leave allowance
• Interest-free travel, bicycle and rental deposit loans
• Professional & personal development opportunities
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Discounts on food and gift shop purchases

If you are a looking for a new challenge or ready to make the next step in your HR career and you are passionate about the Museum, please visit our website for further information and details on how to apply: