Assistant Director, HRTD (Workplace and Labor Relations)

Job Overview

Roles And Responsibilities

Supports the Director in the development and execution of the Division’s labor relations strategy, ensuring alignment between strategic priorities and operational practices.

Provides oversight of contract administration across the Division, ensuring consistent interpretation and application of CBAs, policies, and legal requirements.

Oversees impacts-and-effects bargaining activities in coordination with the Director and ensures appropriate engagement, preparation, and follow-through.

Assists in preparing for collective bargaining, including proposal development, analysis of union positions, and identification of operational and fiscal impacts.

Maintains productive and professional relationships with union leadership and representatives in coordination with the Director.

Participates in labor-management meetings and supports resolution of Division-wide issues.

Represents the Division in high-level meetings and cross-functional initiatives, in coordination with and under the direction of the Director of Workplace and Labor Relations.

Provides direct supervision and strategic direction to Supervisors of Workplace Relations, Equity & Compliance, and Grievance Management.

Establishes expectations for case handling, documentation, timelines, and quality standards; conducts regular reviews to ensure consistency, accuracy, and defensibility.

Sets appropriate triage and assignment of cases, grievances, and labor relations matters across functional areas.

Counsels and develops supervisors to strengthen decision-making, consistency, and leadership effectiveness.

Provides guidance on complex workplace and labor relations matters, including misconduct, discipline, and separation decisions.

Ensures disciplinary actions are consistent with Virginia law, School Board policies, and collective bargaining agreements, and are aligned with past practice and defensible standards.

Reviews high-risk or precedent-setting cases and provides direction on appropriate resolution strategies.

Oversees the administration of the negotiated grievance process, ensuring procedural compliance, consistency with past practice, and alignment with Division strategy.

Reviews and approves grievance responses, ensuring legal sufficiency and strategic alignment prior to issuance.

Leads development of case strategy for arbitration and high-level grievance hearings, including coordination with legal counsel, oversight of evidence development, and preparation of witnesses.

Supports the Division’s response to unfair labor practice charges and other regulatory matters in coordination with legal counsel.

Sustains training strategy for labor relations, ensuring leaders are equipped to effectively apply CBAs, manage employee relations issues, and mitigate risk.

Promotes early resolution of labor and employee relations issues through proactive intervention, reducing reliance on formal grievance and arbitration processes.

Analyzes trends in grievances, investigations, and employee relations matters to identify systemic issues and recommend improvements.

Stays current with federal and state labor and employment laws, VDOE regulations, and evolving best practices in labor relations.

Monitors trends, identifies areas of risk, and provides recommendations for improving consistency and reducing exposure.

Qualifications

• Eight (8) years of progressively responsible experience in human resources, employee relations, or labor relations, with a demonstrated focus on labor relations functions.
• Significant experience administering collective bargaining agreements, grievance processes, and arbitration.
• Significant experience supervising professional staff and managing complex programs.

Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Strong knowledge of employment law, labor law, and public-sector collective bargaining frameworks, including grievance processes, impacts-and-effects bargaining, and employee rights (e.g., Weingarten, Garrity, and Loudermill).
• Advanced analytical skills, including evaluating evidence, assessing credibility, identifying risk, and developing clear, defensible recommendations and written responses.
• Skilled in conflict resolution, mediation, and coaching leaders through sensitive employee and labor relations matters.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex or challenging information clearly and professionally.
• Strong organizational skills and proficiency with Microsoft Office and human resources systems to support case management, documentation, and reporting.

Physical Requirements

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly talking, expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word.
• The employee must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.
• The employee must possess normal cognitive abilities including the ability to learn, recall and apply certain practices and policies.
• Work requires frequently sitting and/or remaining in a stationary position for long periods of time; exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally and negligible amounts of force frequently to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects.