HR Business Partner Employee and Labor Relations

Union Station Homeless Services•Pasadena, CA

About The Position

The HR Business Partner serves as a strategic and hands-on advisor to leaders and employees, with shared responsibility for employee relations and labor relations. This role provides guidance on workplace concerns, investigations, corrective action, grievance and contract administration, performance management, and leadership coaching. The HR Business Partner helps leaders navigate complex people matters, strengthen accountability, support constructive labor-management relationships, and build engaged, high-performing, and people-centered teams while ensuring consistency, compliance, and alignment with organizational values.

Requirements

Thorough knowledge of employee relations and labor relations principles, including workplace investigations, corrective and disciplinary action, grievance administration, contract interpretation, and progressive discipline.
Working knowledge of applicable federal, state, and local employment and labor laws, regulations, and collective bargaining requirements.
Skill in guiding leaders through goal setting, performance feedback, coaching, performance improvement plans, documentation, and corrective action.
Ability to coach and advise leaders on communication, accountability, conflict management, team effectiveness, employee engagement, and sound people-management practices.
Ability to interpret and consistently apply collective bargaining agreements, organizational policies, past practices, and established procedures.
Skill in conducting timely, objective, thorough, and well-documented investigations involving employee complaints, misconduct, policy violations, and workplace concerns.
Ability to assess complex workplace issues, facilitate difficult conversations, resolve conflict, and develop practical solutions that balance employee needs, operational priorities, contractual obligations, and organizational risk.
Ability to understand operational objectives and translate them into effective employee relations, labor relations, performance management, and workforce strategies.
Strong consultation, facilitation, negotiation, and influencing skills, with the ability to build credibility and productive relationships with leaders, employees, union representatives, and other stakeholders.
Strong verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to clearly explain policies, contractual provisions, employment decisions, expectations, and sensitive workplace matters.
Ability to exercise sound judgment, maintain objectivity, assess risk, and make timely recommendations in complex, sensitive, or high-conflict situations.
Demonstrated ability to manage sensitive information with discretion, maintain appropriate confidentiality, and operate with fairness, consistency, professionalism, and integrity.
Ability to analyze employee and labor relations trends, evaluate relevant facts and documentation, identify root causes, and prepare clear, accurate, and defensible written records.
Ability to establish trust and sustain constructive, people-centered relationships while reinforcing accountability, organizational standards, and management rights.
Ability to manage competing priorities, respond effectively to changing operational needs, and independently handle multiple complex matters within established timelines.
5+ years of progressive HR experience, including employee and labor relations and performance management responsibilities.
Strong knowledge of employment laws, HR best practices, workplace investigations, and policy administration.
Demonstrated ability to coach leaders, resolve complex workplace issues, and manage sensitive matters with discretion.
Excellent verbal and written communication, documentation, judgment, and relationship-building skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting unionized environments, labor relations, or collective bargaining agreement interpretation strongly preferred.
SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP, PHR, SPHR, or similar certification preferred.

Responsibilities

Provide timely guidance to leaders and employees on workplace concerns, policy interpretation, conflict resolution, and employee conduct matters.
Conduct and support workplace investigations, including intake, documentation, interviews, findings, and recommended next steps.
Partner with managers to address employee concerns in a fair, consistent, and legally compliant manner.
Identify employee relations trends and recommend proactive solutions to improve communication, trust, and workplace culture.
Support the development and consistent application of HR policies, procedures, and employee communication practices.
Support labor relations activities, including contract interpretation, grievance handling, bargaining preparation, and union-management communication.
Partner with leadership and legal counsel to ensure compliance with collective bargaining agreements, labor laws, and organizational practices.
Prepare documentation, timelines, data, and analysis related to grievances, negotiations, information requests, and labor-related matters.
Coach leaders on effective communication and decision-making in a unionized environment.
Help build constructive labor-management relationships while protecting management rights and organizational interests.
Coach managers on performance expectations, corrective action, documentation, accountability, and employee development plans.
Support annual and ongoing performance management processes, including goal setting, feedback, performance reviews, and calibration discussions.
Partner with leaders to address performance concerns early through clear expectations, coaching, and follow-through.
Review performance-related documentation to ensure consistency, fairness, and alignment with policy and employment law.
Identify performance trends and recommend training, tools, or leadership interventions to improve team effectiveness.
Partner with leaders to identify capability gaps and develop practical leadership development solutions.
Coach managers on employee engagement, communication, conflict resolution, team dynamics, and change management.
Support leadership training programs focused on accountability, feedback, inclusion, labor awareness, and people management fundamentals.
Help leaders strengthen their ability to manage performance, build trust, and lead through complex workplace situations.
Collaborate with HR and organizational leadership to support succession planning, talent reviews, and internal growth opportunities.