Employee and Labor Relations Business Partner

Requisition ID: 108923

 

Share Our Purpose. Be Yourself. Feel Valued.

 

People are the heart of our business. As an American Water employee, you will be offered a competitive salary and health benefits package, along with opportunities to develop, grow, and evolve your career. Our benefits packages focus on key areas such as health & wellness, emotional & well-being, and savings for current & future goals.

 

We are Beautifully Different . We strongly believe having diversity across our company makes us more successful and helps us provide essential services to our customers. We are stronger because we embrace different ideas, viewpoints, experiences, and backgrounds. American Water is the best choice for your next role! Click here for more information on our inclusion, diversity, and equity journey.

 

About American Water
American Water (NYSE: AWK) is the largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States. With a history dating back to 1886, We Keep Life Flowing® by providing safe, clean, reliable and affordable drinking water and wastewater services to more than 14 million people across 14 regulated jurisdictions and 18 military installations. American Water’s 6,500 talented professionals leverage their significant expertise and the company’s national size and scale to achieve excellent outcomes for the benefit of customers, employees, investors and other stakeholders.

As one of the fastest growing utilities in the U.S., American Water expects to invest $40 to $42 billion in infrastructure repairs and replacement, system resiliency and regulated acquisitions over the next 10 years. The company has a long-standing history of executing its core operations, aligned with sustainable best practices, through its commitments to safety, affordability, customer service, protecting the environment, an inclusive workforce and strengthening communities.

American Water has been recognized on the 2023 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index for the fifth consecutive year, ranked 18th on Barron’s 100 Most Sustainable U.S. Companies 2023 List, earned the U.S. Department of Homeland Security SAFETY Act designation and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense® Excellence Award, among additional state, local and national recognitions.

For more information, visit amwater.com and join American Water on LinkedIn , Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .

 

 

 

Primary Role

The Employee and Labor Relations (ELR) Business Partner provides consistent support through designated centers of expertise (COE) assigned to the ELR Team. Executes consistent strategies in areas of expertise using established guidance and practices. Optimizes business performance by focusing on employee and labor relations matters for both the union and non-union workforce, ensuring compliance to State and Federal laws, regulatory agencies, company policies, and collective bargaining agreements.

Key Accountabilities

• Ensures consistent delivery of service and execution of COE strategies by ELR team members, by supporting internal organizational stakeholders in both union and non-union employee and labor relations matters, including, but not limited to investigations, disciplinary processes, labor negotiations, positive employee relations, and labor contract administration.
• Uses designated tools, process guidance, and systems to ensure consistent execution of tasks.
• Tracks and reports activities and outcomes to leadership and other stakeholders.
• Provides consultation and support to the business for employee and labor relations matters including risk analyses.
• Working with leadership and peers, seeks professional development opportunities to foster independent strategic thinking and skillful execution of all employee and labor relations functions.
• Ensure compliance with various state and federal laws and/or agencies throughout diverse regions; guiding business managers to proactively identify and navigate risks.
• Participates in and supports labor contract and mid-contract negotiations as needed.
• Develop and support the maintenance of positive, constructive labor-management relationships and positive employee relations in both union and non-union locations that drive and facilitate our success.
• Assists with the development and delivery of training for people leaders and other stakeholders designed to enhance consistency of processes throughout the organization.
• Delivers fluid and timely people processes that allow for quick action and flexibility
• Models and fosters a team dynamic both within the ELR team and with other stakeholder teams throughout the business.

Knowledge/Skills

• Direct experience handling all aspects of ELR issues, including intake, review, and resolution of investigations and disciplinary actions.
• Must have the ability to deal with highly confidential information.
• Ability to effectively provide expertise in ELR issues at all levels of the organization.
• Understands relevant ELR law and demonstrates the ability to apply this knowledge to any challenging or sensitive situations.
• Able to work independently and with a sense of urgency
• Excellent verbal and written communication and problem-solving skills
• Demonstrates strong attention to detail, sound judgment, and effective decision-making.
• Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing with excellent usage of grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• Ability to navigate existing AW technologies and quickly learn emerging technologies.
• Ability to communicate effectively and with all levels within and outside the organization.
• Effectively implements policies, procedures, and labor agreements.
• Extensive knowledge of all Human Resources areas including employment law, labor laws, EEO, ERISA, and other compliance mandates and ensure compliance with various state and federal laws and/or agencies throughout diverse regions; guiding business managers to proactively identify and navigate risks.
• As an expert in employee and labor relations, provides the business with risk analyses on ELR matters.

Experience/Education

• Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources or related field preferred; Masters Degree Desirable; or
• Min. of seven years Labor and Employment relations experience with a union workforce
• Experience in all aspects of labor and employee relations.
• Demonstrated experience in labor negotiations and with handling labor disputes in the grievance-arbitration procedure and the National Labor Relations Board. Experience as first chair in negotiations preferred.
• Demonstrated experience applying sound principles of investigation and imposition of disciplinary with advanced knowledge of workplace investigations.

Certifications & Licenses

HR Certification preferred

Work Environment

Modern day professional office environment

Travel Requirements

>20%

Competencies

Champions safety

Customer obsessed

Cultivates innovation

Nimble learning

Drives Results

Collaborates

Join American Water... We Keep Life Flowing ™

American Water is firmly committed to Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and prohibits employment discrimination for employees and applicants based on his or her age, race, color, pregnancy, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, marital status, citizenship, or because they are an individual with a disability, protected veteran or other status protected by federal, state, and local laws.