Sr. Employee Relations Advisor

The Sr. Lead Advisor, Talent Relations is responsible for managing complex employee relations issues and ensuring compliance with labor and employment laws and organizational policies for CFA Supply and Bay Center Foods Services employees. They may also consult on escalated employee relations issues for Operations employees. They will serve as a trusted advisor to Talent (HR) Leaders on conflict resolution and disciplinary actions for Chick-fil-A Supply Services Staff. This role involves conducting investigations, preparing detailed reports, and recommending appropriate outcomes. The Employee Relations Lead also plays a key role in developing and delivering training to promote a positive workplace culture and mitigate risk.

About Chick-fil-A Supply and Bay Center Foods:

Both wholly owned subsidiaries of Chick-fil-A, Inc., Chick-fil-A Supply™ is a distribution service provider focused entirely on serving the unique needs of Chick-fil-A restaurants, while Bay Center Foods™ is a manufacturing facility that primarily focuses on lemon juice production, among other innovations, to help alleviate complexity in the Restaurants. This position will provide multi-site leadership for our growing network.

Our Flexible Future model offers a healthy mix of working in person and virtually, strengthening key elements of the Chick-fil-A culture by fostering collaboration and community.

• Serve as a subject matter expert and advisor on employee relations best practices and strategies to HR partners and leaders.
• Collaborate with Talent and Legal teams to develop and execute investigation plans, document findings, and recommend appropriate resolutions for employee relations matters.
• Consult with Legal to ensure consistent interpretation and application of policies and practices related to employee relations cases.
• Serve as Staff liaison to external counsel on HR-related investigations.
• Conduct investigations to address employee concerns and provide recommendations to  People Leaders and stakeholders to determine appropriate actions.
• Create appropriate documentation and investigation reports.
• Analyze trends in employee relations issues and provide actionable insights and recommendations to senior leadership to support a healthy and productive work environment.
• Educate and coach Staff, leaders, and Talent Leaders on policies and procedures to support fair and equitable workplace practices.
• Maintain case tracking systems and reports, monitoring data and trends, and regularly update senior leaders on key metrics and insights.
• Review and update content on internal employee relations policy sites to ensure accuracy and accessibility.
• Consult CFA Supply Distribution Center and Bay Center Foods Talent leaders in facilitating training sessions for Staff, leaders, and distribution center employees on employment law topics, in partnership with Legal.
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations through ongoing review and partnership with Legal and CFA Supply and BCF Talent Leaders.
• Assist with/lead assigned employee relations and civility project work and process improvement.
• Travel as needed to distribution centers to conduct on-site assessments or investigations, support Talent efforts, and deliver relevant training or guidance.

• Bachelor's Degree
• 7-9 years of professional relevant work experience
• Minimum 7 years Human Resources experience with focus on employee relations for 5 or more years
• Demonstrated knowledge and application of federal, state and local employment laws and regulations such as Title VII, ADA, FLSA, FMLA, ADEA, STAA, OSHA, harassment & retaliation, workers’ compensation statutes in workplace setting
• Aptitude to work with several technology platforms
• Knowledge and understanding of Microsoft’s standard suite of work solutions (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, etc.)
• Excellent writing, documentation, and editing skills, specifically in the development of reports, guidelines and written summaries
• Strong communication/presentation skills and ability to communicate effectively with all levels of leadership, particularly at executive levels in the Company
• Proficiency in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting complex data
• Ability to work through complex talent matters bringing resolution in a calm and professional manner
• Ability to listen with patience and respond to high level, controversial issues utilizing good judgement
• Ability to use tact and diplomacy in resolving sensitive issues and to use professional judgment in addressing sensitive, confidential matters
• Ability to prioritize, work independently and time manage work assignments
• Ability to develop collaborative and innovative solutions around Employee Relations issues and Practices
• Experience as a trusted advisor and demonstrated ability to partner and influence others without direct authority and to coach leaders when resolving employee relations matters, using a multi-HR-faceted approach to problem solving
• Demonstrated skills in negotiation, facilitation, and mediation
• Experience handling high volume investigations including field investigations
• Ability to prepare and present training programs and materials
• Ability to coach and develop leaders at all levels on effective employee relations
• Travel up to 25% 

• 2 or more years of experience in a distribution, manufacturing and/or warehousing environment
• 2 or more years of labor relations experience
• Prior experience working in a fast-paced and rapidly changing environment
• Working knowledge of distribution (warehouse) and transportation operations
• Ability to analyze data to identify trends or learning opportunities
• Excellent organizational skills and close attention to detail
• Experience driving clarity in ambiguous situations
• PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP