[Hiring] Employee Relations Manager @Azets

Role Description

The Employee Relations Manager will provide confident, commercially focused and risk-aware ER leadership across the business, while leading a team of People Advisors. This is a hands-on role and is not suited to someone who wants to step away from casework. It requires a credible ER specialist who understands the business model, reads the commercial environment, anticipates where people risk and operational pressure intersect, and enjoys being close to complex and high-volume case activity.

The role will support managers and senior stakeholders across the UK and Ireland with complex employee relations matters, ensuring cases are handled consistently, proportionately and in line with applicable legal requirements, policy and the organisation’s wider operating model. The postholder will help protect the business from avoidable risk while enabling fair, pragmatic and timely outcomes.

Key accountabilities

• Lead, coach and support a team of People Advisors, ensuring they are clear on priorities, standards and the level of ownership expected across ER activity.
• Provide day-to-day direction on case handling, risk assessment, stakeholder management and escalation points.
• Build capability within the team through feedback, coaching and consistent quality review of advice, documentation and case strategy.
• Help create a team culture that is commercially aware, accountable, proactive and focused on high-quality advisory work.

Qualifications

• Strong employee relations experience, either gained in a specialist ER role or as a qualified employment lawyer advising on complex and contentious workplace matters.
• Experience leading, coaching or mentoring People Advisors, ER Advisors or similar HR/People colleagues is highly desirable.
• Sound working knowledge of UK employment law, with experience of Irish employment law or cross-jurisdictional ER matters strongly preferred.
• For legally qualified candidates, the role requires the ability to translate legal advice into practical, commercial and manager-ready guidance rather than operating solely as a technical legal adviser.
• Ideally, experience operating across both the UK and Ireland, with the judgement to recognise where local legal, cultural or procedural differences need to be reflected in advice and case strategy.
• Experience advising managers and senior stakeholders on risk, process, options and recommended outcomes.
• Proven ability to draft clear, accurate and defensible ER documentation.
• Experience working with external legal advisers, ACAS, Employment Tribunal matters or settlement processes would be advantageous.
• Experience supporting restrictive covenant matters, post-employment obligations or commercially sensitive employee exits would be advantageous.
• CIPD qualification or equivalent experience is desirable.

Benefits

• Hybrid & flexible working
• Birthday leave
• Professional subscription
• Much more