Senior Manager - Labor Relations

About the Role

The Sr. Manager, Labor Relations will be the first and main point of contact for interaction and communication with the Union at the Volkswagen Chattanooga plant. This role coordinates collective bargaining and union alignment processes, establishing and maintaining trustful relationships with internal and external partners to enhance business opportunities and foster a positive working environment. This is a hybrid role located in Chattanooga, TN, USA.

Responsibilities

• Serves as lead negotiator of the company’s collective bargaining committee in contract negotiations with the union.
• Maintains current knowledge of labor relations trends, legal decisions, and statutory changes; conducts research to support contract negotiations and labor relations.
• Uses appropriate negotiation strategies to develop bargaining goals and negotiate contracts consistent with Volkswagen of America’s mission, values, and goals.
• Administers and manages the administration of union contracts; provides interpretation of union contracts to managers, employees, and the HR team; oversees processes for review and resolution of employee grievances.
• Advises managers and employees on sensitive labor and employee relations matters, including grievance and arbitration procedures, performance issues, and disciplinary actions.
• Facilitates ongoing communication and working relationships with the union, including coordination of joint labor-management committees. Acts as the main point of contact for union representatives.
• Provides information, advice, and assistance to Human Resources regarding the application of statutes, regulations, contracts, and practices related to labor relations.
• Manages the process to investigate and respond to complaints from government agencies regarding labor topics. May represent the company in hearings related to unfair labor practice complaints.
• Reconciles labor relations issues in the context of both existing labor agreements and desired future states of labor relations.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field (Human Resources, Legal, Industrial/Labor Relations, Business Administration, or related). A Master’s Degree is desired.
• 5+ years of professional experience in collective bargaining, labor relations activities, grievance processing, leading contract implementation, and administration.
• Experience with labor relations in a unionized automotive manufacturing environment.
• Employment law experience.

Skills

• General Skills:
  • Strong strategic, execution, collaboration, and leadership skills.
  • Proven ability to successfully lead change initiatives and integration efforts toward a common goal.
  • Effective problem-solving, analytical, and data-driven decision-making skills.
  • Strong project management, planning, and organization skills, including the ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment.
  • Proven ability to lead effectively in conventional structures as well as matrixed/networked teams.
  • Resilient with ambiguity and complex business situations; persuasive, influential, and outspoken.
  • Strong interpersonal, written, presentation, facilitation, and relationship-building skills.
  • Skilled in building credibility, trust, and commitment within teams and among stakeholders.
  • High degree of customer-centricity and sense of urgency.
• Specialized Skills:
  • Conflict resolution and mediation.
  • Project management experience.
  • Strong negotiation skills.
  • Excellent communication skills.

Schedule

• Hybrid work arrangement.
• Minimal domestic and international travel.
• Shift work, as required.