Sr. Director for Employee and Labor Relations

About the role

The Senior Director of Employee and Labor Relations at NJIT will serve as a key member of the Human Resources leadership team and the University's lead expert on employee and labor relations. Reporting to the Senior Vice President for Human Resources and Institutional Access, this role will guide a workforce of approximately 2,200 employees represented by eight collective bargaining units.

Responsibilities

• Guide collective bargaining, contract interpretation, dispute resolution, workplace investigations, policy development, faculty and staff relations, and labor-management partnership.
• Provide vision, judgment, and expertise across various areas of employee and labor relations.
• Build organizational capability, improve consistency, and position employee and labor relations as a proactive, trusted, and solutions-oriented partner.
• Navigate complex workforce matters with clarity, diplomacy, resilience, and sound judgment.

Requirements

• Significant progressive experience leading employee and labor relations functions within complex organizations, preferably in higher education, the public sector, healthcare, or other highly unionized, mission-driven, or matrixed environments.
• Demonstrated first-chair collective bargaining experience, including experience serving as lead spokesperson, developing bargaining strategy, building internal consensus, negotiating agreements, discerning when to compromise and when to hold firm, and managing contract administration.
• Extensive experience interpreting and applying collective bargaining agreements, labor laws, employment regulations, policies, and contractual obligations.
• Familiarity with faculty environments, shared governance, and the resolution of complex personnel matters in academic settings.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree is required; an advanced degree, J.D., or other relevant graduate degree is preferred, and equivalent combinations of education and directly relevant experience may be considered.

Skills

• Technical depth in labor and employee relations.
• Strategic judgment and emotional intelligence.
• Resilience and ability to serve as a steady advisor to senior leaders.

Benefits

Not specified.

Pay

$200,000 - $225,000

Schedule

Not specified.