6954 - Director, Labor Relations

Portland General Electric • Portland, OR

5d • Hybrid

About The Position

At PGE, our work involves dreaming about, planning for, and realizing a smarter, cleaner, more enduring Oregon neighborhood. Its core to our DNA and we haven’t stopped since we started in 1888. We energize lives, strengthen communities and drive advancements in energy that promote social, economic and environmental progress. We’re always on the lookout for people passionate about leading and being a part of teams that are advancing innovative clean energy solutions that are also affordable and accessible to all. OVERVIEW The Director, Labor Relations leads PGE’s strategy for managing relationships with represented employees and ensuring effective partnership with union leadership. This role is responsible for overseeing collective bargaining, advising senior leaders on labor strategy, and ensuring the organization effectively navigates complex workforce dynamics in a highly regulated industry. Reporting directly to the Chief Human Resources Officer and serving as a member of the HR Senior Leadership Team, the Director acts as the company’s lead labor strategist and chief negotiator. The role partners closely with executives, operations leadership, HR, and Legal to guide negotiations, interpret collective bargaining agreements, and manage grievances and arbitrations. This leader plays an important role in ensuring PGE maintains strong, productive labor relationships while protecting the organization from legal risk and supporting a high-performing workforce.

Requirements

• Requires a bachelor’s degree in industrial relations, labor relations or another related field, or equivalent experience.
• Typically 15 or more years in human resources (HR), specifically compensation benefits, staffing, training, or employee/labor relations, or related field.
• Experience serving as lead negotiator and partnering with union leadership in a complex or regulated environment is strongly preferred.
• Expert knowledge of federal labor relations and wage and hour laws and collective bargaining agreements
• Expert skills in negotiating bargaining agreements and resolving labor disputes
• Expert knowledge of labor relations principles, contract administration, and grievance processes
• Advanced skills in designing and implementing labor relations policies, practices, and programs
• Expert analytical thinking skills
• Expert conflict management skills
• Expert consulting skills
• Expert decision-making skills
• Advanced organizational management skills
• Expert presentation and facilitation skills
• Expert problem-solving skills
• Advanced resource management skills
• Expert written and oral communication skills
• Drives Vision and Purpose
• Business Insight
• Strategic Mindset
• Develops Talent
• Manages Ambiguity
• Ability to adhere to set response times, deadlines and time-sensitive tasks
• Ability to follow accuracy standards
• Ability to interact effectively and collaboratively within a team environment
• Ability to communicate and problem solve when under stress
• Ability to respond and adapt to frequent change
• Ability to accept and demonstrate self-awareness when provided constructive feedback
• Ability to discern feedback and acknowledge ownership of areas of improvement
• Ability to successfully collaborate with peers, managers and others within the organization
• Ability to process new information to be applied consistently to work tasks
• Ability to work long hours
• Ability to work a variable schedule
• Ability to report to work and perform work during periods of severe inclement weather
• Ability to consistently meet attendance standards for regular, reliable, predictable full-time attendance
• Ability to work shift schedule
• Ability to work on-call schedule

Nice To Haves

• Graduate-level coursework in labor law or industrial relations is preferred.
• Experience working with represented workforces in the utility or energy industry, including the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), is highly desirable.
• Advanced knowledge of utility industry practices in company operating areas

Responsibilities

• Lead Labor Relations Strategy Lead the development and execution of PGE’s labor relations strategy, ensuring alignment with enterprise priorities, operational needs, and regulatory requirements. Serve as the organization’s senior advisor on labor relations matters, providing guidance to executives and operational leaders on labor strategy, union partnership, and workforce dynamics.
• Lead Collective Bargaining and Negotiations Serve as the company’s chief spokesperson and lead negotiator for collective bargaining agreements. Develop and execute negotiation strategies that support PGE’s operational and workforce objectives. Lead all aspects of contract negotiations, including memorandums of understanding (MOUs), contract administration, and dispute resolution while maintaining constructive relationships with union leadership.
• Oversee Grievances and Contract Administration Provide strategic oversight of grievance administration and contract interpretation to ensure consistent and compliant application of collective bargaining agreements. Partner with leaders and HR partners to address complex contract issues and represent the organization in arbitrations and mediations when necessary.
• Lead Team and Develop Talent Lead and develop the labor relations team, setting clear priorities and building a high-performing function that supports the organization’s labor strategy. Strengthen leadership capability across the company by providing guidance and tools that help leaders effectively manage represented workforces while ensuring consistent labor relations practices across the enterprise.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director