Job title: Senior Manager Employee Relations – 12 month FTC (Maternity)

Department: HR

Location: Southampton 

GLS: M04

Working hours: Monday – Friday 8:30 – 4:30 

*This role will operate a hybrid (3 days in office / 2 home based) until May 2026 when this will move to 5 days per week* 

A brighter future awaits you

CooperVision is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of soft contact lenses with a presence in over 100 countries. Being part of CooperVision means helping improve the way people see each day. It’s more than making contact lenses, it’s about giving lens wearers freedom and confidence to move about their daily lives. We’re all about bright futures – for our people and those who wear our contact lenses.

Job summary – What to expect: 

As the Senior Manager Employee Relations you will be responsible for providing support and advice to leaders on all ER related topics including absence, disciplinary and investigations. Responsible for leading a team of 3 specialists. 

The person in this role has responsibility for ensuring our Employee Relations approach promotes and facilitates healthy working relationships that benefit the UK based businesses and functions, driving employee engagement and alignment to our values and behaviours. The role works closely with our HR Business Services team with accountability for ensuring we provide a positive people experience at Coopervision. Key responsibilities include:

Enhance the integrated business model for the employee relations service across the UK business supporting all People Leaders and functions  Develop and continuously improve the service proposition that proactively enables all line managers to confidently manage people related issues and address conflicts in a commercial manner. Lead and develop the team to deliver an efficient and effective service ensuring they operate as subject matter experts on all aspects of ER and associated legislation, and are supported with appropriate development and upskilling to ensure knowledge is up to date  Develop and evolve analysis and insight to identify trends that support decision making about new areas of focus and services/ support needed for the business  Continuously evaluate the approach to Employee Relations through feedback, understanding and external bodies and organisations to bring best practice and innovation back into Coopervision Operate as a key advisor across the HR leadership team and other key stakeholder forums and ensure strong working relationships that enable coaching, guidance and expertise is provided where required.  Oversee design, development and maintenance of a suite of HR Advice and ER tools and guides that support all areas of the UK business  Form part of the broader HR leadership team with critical input into the future evolution of the broader service and support model and team development Develop and chair relevant governance around our ER practices and processes including any key business stakeholders as appropriate  Operate as the escalation point for any issues or complaints and ensuring satisfactory resolution and ongoing improvements  Keep abreast of ER practices and innovation and highlight opportunities where they exist

A full job description is available upon request. 

About you:

We are looking for someone who has a proven track record of leading and dealing with complex ER. This role would suit an HR professional who has a depth of ER experience and has led a dedicated function previously within this area. The preferred candidate will be a confident leader able to navigate through change and motivate the team.  

Experience & Education:

Required

CIPD or equivalent (L7 preferred)  In depth knowledge of employment legislation and caselaw and strategies to ensure knowledge remains up to date  Exceptional communication skills at all levels  Ability to build and maintain effective relationships at all levels providing influence and challenge  Ability to actively manage things to conclusion (design and planning through to execution) Experience of leading and managing a large team The ability to balance pragmatism with commercial outcomes and associated risks  Passion for proactive Employee Relations and driving increased performance through upskilling line managers  Experience of being able to navigate through complexity and ambiguity with strong judgement  Ability to build trust and ask appropriate / challenging questions to get to the heart of the business requirements  The ability to understand key business requirements and spot opportunities where appropriate 

What we offer:

You’ll receive competitive compensation and a fantastic benefits package including; car allowance, management incentive bonus, PMI, 25 days holiday, pension scheme, healthcare cash plan, life assurance, access to our Wellness Platform to support you in mental health and wellbeing, a discounted contact lens scheme and much more!

We are committed to our employees’ personal and professional development and offer extensive training to support your career growth and help every individual to reach their full potential. To help us achieve our goals, we’ll give you everything you need to help you achieve yours. 

We also provide access to LinkedIn Learning to help you develop in you career and grow with CooperVision.

All suitably qualified candidates will be given equal consideration. 

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