Director, Labour Relations | Calgary Board of Education

The Organization

Our client, The Calgary Board of Education (CBE) is the largest school board in western Canada with over 125,000 students and 15,000 employees. They pride themselves in the values they hold. Students come first. Learning is their central purpose. Public education serves the common good.

Mission: Each student, in keeping with their individual abilities and gifts, will complete high school with a foundation of learning necessary to thrive in life, work and continued learning.

When you apply to the CBE, you can feel good about serving their future leaders and contributing to student success. The CBE encourages an inclusive and equitable workplace, which supports their diverse student and employee community. They encourage all applicants to join their dynamic, diverse, and collaborative culture and welcome applications from all qualified individuals.

For further information about the CBE, please visit their website at https://www.cbe.ab.ca/

 

The Opportunity

Reports to:	Superintendent, Human Resources
Direct Reports:	2 (Manager, Human Resources Advisory Services and Manager, Employee Health Resource Centre)
Indirect Reports:	25 total staff
Location:	Calgary, AB

 

Mandate

Reporting to the Superintendent, Human Resources, The Director, Labour Relations will be responsible for leading the Employee and Labour Relations (ER/LR) practice across the organization including accountability for collective bargaining and client human resources advisory services. This position will create and deliver ER/LR strategies, frameworks and policies that enable respectful and productive relationships between employees and leaders, and between CBE and their union partners. In addition, the role will provide advice to senior leaders on complex employment matters as well as act as the primary liaison between CBE and their union partners. This individual will work collaboratively with the Director, Human Resources Operations and the Director, Talent Management to deliver results that address the needs and priorities of the CBE and its employees, aligning with the vision and values expressed in the Education Plan.

 

Key Accountabilities

• Leads and coordinates a team of human resources leaders, functional experts and This position leads both the Human Resources Advisory Services and Employee Health Resource teams.
• Activates ER/LR and employee health and wellness strategies through the development and delivery of policies, frameworks and processes to enable effective and consistent employee and labour relations and heath and wellness practices across the organization.
• Provides specialist advice to the Human Resources Advisory Services team and/or leaders on complex employment matters related to employee conduct and discipline, performance and attendance management, grievances, terminations as well as the interpretation and application of the collective agreement, legislation and policies and procedures.
• Leads and oversees complex workplace investigations including harassment and workplace misconduct investigations. Represents Human Resources in corporate investigations to ensure consistency of
• Provides oversight and consultation on the internal grievance process and represents CBE in the preparation and presentation of cases at arbitration or Boards of References.
• Makes decisions on behalf of CBE related to grievances, settlements, severance arrangements and other legal matters regarding employee and labour relations in partnership with internal and external legal counsel as
• Leads and/or participates in collective bargaining and leads the execution and implementation of post bargaining activities across multiple functions and areas.
• Provides leadership on employee health and wellness related issues including ensuring effective collaboration with other areas of human resources and other functional areas and operations around matters such as employee accommodations.
• Effectively manages relationships with external providers such as Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP), long-term disability insurers and Workers Compensation Board (WCB).
• Provides thought leadership on leading employment practices by staying current with employment legislation and identifying relevant trends.
• Conducts organizational analysis of ER/LR and employee health and wellness activities and collaborates with key internal partners across Human Resources, Risk Management and Legal to identify prevalent employee and labour relations concerns and proactively address employee wellness related issues.
• Based on this research, proactively identifies enhancements across employment policies and frameworks to mitigate risk and recommend improvements to human resources programming.
• Performs other related duties as assigned to meet service unit and system goals and

 

First Year Deliverables / Measures of Success

Success in the first year will be determined by the candidate’s ability to:

• Develop and implement the Labour Relations strategy for the CBE, continuing an interest-based approach and strategy in all interactions
• Build collaborative and strong working relationships with union groups and successfully negotiate and/or ratify collective agreements with the five bargaining groups: Alberta Teachers Association, Staff Association (Main Group), Staff Association (Professional Group), Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Bargaining Council of the CBE Construction and Maintenance Skilled Trades Unions
• Provide leadership and guidance in the development of ER/LR benchmark data and in the documentation of ER/LR business processes
• Provide technical expertise, guidance and coaching as it relates to ER/LR considerations to all respective groups within the organization (human resources advisory services, employee health and wellness, etc.)
• Develop training programs to increase the capacity of leaders at all levels in the organization to effectively manage employee related issues

 

Candidate Profile

The successful candidate will have the following:

Education:

• A post-secondary degree with specialization in commerce, human resource management or related field

Experience:

• A well-versed professional with proven experience (10+ years) of diversified and progressive human resources leadership in complex, unionized environments. Experience working in the public sector is an asset
• Deep specialist expertise in employee/labour relations with experience in collective bargaining, grievance/arbitration and investigations
• Experience with policy and program development

Competencies and Attributes:

• A skilled negotiator who effectively balances the best interests of employees and the organization
• A strong relationship builder with the ability to work collaboratively with key stakeholders and achieve results through influence in a large, complex, unionized environment
• An autonomous, self-starter with the ability to manage competing demands in a fast-paced environment to meet deadlines
• Able to foster and maintain relationships with leaders of all levels, external stakeholders and vendors, as well as union representatives
• A skilled communicator with exceptional written and verbal communication
• Data-driven, with the ability to think critically and see the big picture while aligning to broader strategies

Equal Opportunity

CBE is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognizes that a diverse team benefits and enriches our work and is essential to operational excellence. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and encourage women, members of racialized communities, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, and persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities to confidentially self-identify at the time of application. In accordance with provincial legislation, accommodation will be provided by Gallagher and CBE throughout the recruitment, selection and/or assessment process, upon request, to applicants with disabilities. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply.

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How to Apply:

Please send your resume in Word or PDF format to: liam_tomney@AJG.com. Copy and Paste the following job title and code and place it in the subject line of your email so we can identify the job and confirm receipt of your application:
A026116 (AARO-144884) Director, Labour Relations | Calgary Board of Education - AB - Calgary and Area (OTIAPPLY)

Please note that only those candidates meeting the selection criteria, established by our client, will be contacted further. Although we may not contact you directly for this particular role, all applications will be reviewed as we would like to consider you for future opportunities that may be appropriate. We encourage you to continue to visit our website at optimumtalent.com as our opportunities are updated on a regular basis.