Employee Relations Partner

Müller UK & Ireland is wholly owned by the Unternehmensgruppe Theo Müller which employs over 24,000 people throughout Europe. In the UK, Müller develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of branded and private label dairy products made with milk from more than 1,700 British farmers. The Müller brand is ranked at No.7 in The Grocer’s Top 100 list of Britain’s Biggest Brands, and is also the 7th most chosen brand in the UK. We are recruiting for an Employee Relations Partner, who will provide all people managers and HRBP/HRM's with professional support to resolve all people related matters, such as long term absence, disciplinary, grievance, performance management, org design, consultations, with the focus on gaining the best outcomes for both the business and the employees.  Act as a subject matter expert for all employee relations and related cases, providing appropriate advice and support to all people managers, driving best practice and ensuring compliance with all company policies and procedures in-line with UK employment legislation.  This role will be based at our Müller Yogurt and Desserts site in either Market Drayton, or Telford, Shropshire. Based on the need of the partner group, the Employee Relations partner must be prepared to travel based on region of sites allocated and embed themselves into the business unit, site or functions, to build relationships, knowledge and understanding of their partner group. Key Tasks and Responsibilities: Case Management: Advocating a culture which is resolution-focused to improve business outcomes. Working closely with the Site HRBP, Legal Counsel CoE to ensure alignment on key ER issues. People Manager Development: Coach, guide and influence people managers on all people related matters and the best approach to dealing with people related topics, developing their knowledge , capability and confidence. Support communication and training of people managers and local HR teams on their roles and responsibilities in delivering ER processes, as well as working with the relevant HRBP and Legal Counsel CoE to arrange appropriate learning initiatives. Escalation: Escalate and advise Head of HR / HRBP and Legal Counsel CoE, of any complex high risk cases or disputes and determine together solutions, course of action, mitigating the risk and any PR exposure. Providing support to legal counsel CoE in the preparation for any employment tribunal cases. Escalate to Head of HR/HRBP and Legal Counsel CoE of any concerns , issues with cases, where appropriate advice provided is not being considered by the People Manager / SLT and requires an intervention. Seek advice and guidance from Legal Counsel CoE on all complex cases to mitigate any risk early on and ensure legal compliance. Data insights and Trend Analysis: Proactively supports the business with data insights both external and internal on People trends and issues. Works collaboratively with the business to develop improvement strategies and deliver successful People relations program/interventions in support of organisational change. Develop and apply people policies which improve the people experience and employer brand and mitigate risk to the business. Key skills and experience: Degree educated Experience of analysing data, providing data insights to support engagement and positive employee relations Experience in managing employee relations matters of all levels, cradle to grave case management.  Specifically specialise in the management of long term absence cases Proven excellent stakeholder management with the ability to adapt to different styles and approaches, quickly building strong and effective working relationships, delivering service excellence Deep and up to date understanding of UK employment legislation and best practice and keeping up to date on changes Relevant specialist employment law qualification and or CIPD Associate/Chartered member   Passion for CI with experience of working on own initiatives to implement change and operational process improvement Strong communication and influencing skills with the ability to interact across all levels of management   Strong customer focus Strong attention to detail, problem solving ability and ability to deliver results to deadlines Good interpersonal and written communication skills Previous experience of working to challenging SLAs/KPIs