Senior Legal Counsel - U.S. Employment & Labor Relations

Company: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Location: Akron
Posted on: February 13, 2020

Job Description:

Reporting to the General Counsel, the Senior Legal Counsel - U.S. Employee & Labor Relations, is responsible for providing competent, practical, and timely legal advice, counsel and support to Human Resources professionals and other executive and business leaders in the U.S. on labor and employment matters. This position will also defend the company in labor and employment related claims filed with state and federal agencies in the U.S. and supervises and directs the work of outside counsel in various legal proceedings. This position will serve as a key member of the Legal and Human Resources organizations to help identify and proactively manage legal risks, and provide practical strategies, training and counsel for risk avoidance to the U.S. corporate functions, business units, and plants. This position supervises the Legal Counsel - Employment and Labor Relations position and works closely with the Human Resources and Compliance & Ethics departments. -- Specific duties and responsibilities of the Senior Legal Counsel - Employee & Labor Relations, U.S. will include, but not be limited to the following: -- -- -- -- -- --Maintains primary responsibility for a large volume of work. Provides extensive day-to day legal counsel and advice to HR and management on a variety of U.S. labor and employment related matters, which may include, but are not limited to, workplace investigations, discrimination/harassment claims, FMLA and other protected leaves of absence, ADA reasonable accommodations, wage and hour issues, background checks, drug testing, employee discipline, terminations and separation agreements, layoffs, labor relations (including advising on the terms of the various collective bargaining agreements), employment agreements and restrictive covenant obligations, workplace violence, unemployment, and general employee relations matters. -- -- -- -- -- Remains highly knowledgeable and proficient in federal and state labor and employment laws and regulations, including federal contracting requirements. Keeps company abreast of changes to applicable U.S. labor and employment laws and ensures compliance with such laws by proactively developing, implementing and administering training, policies, procedures and practices. Independently handles legal matters and projects ranging from basic to complex. -- -- -- -- -- Supervises and directs the work of the Legal Counsel - Employment and Labor Relations position and outside counsel. Responds to government agency charges (e.g., EEOC, DOL, etc.). Responsible for retaining, evaluating, and managing budget/billing of outside counsel's defense of formal citations, claims, legal complaints or lawsuits and similar actions brought in the U.S. Provides counsel regarding and/or investigation of reports made through the company's Integrity hotline. Partners with EEO Compliance Manager to support the company's EEO/AAP obligations. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Provides legal advice and counsel to procurement and management personnel relative to reviewing, drafting, negotiating and complying with contractual terms and conditions, including federal contracting requirements, indemnification or similar legal protections in third-party contracts, purchase orders or similar agreements covering non-employee workers, particularly arrangements with staffing, personnel and outplacement providers and vendors. Provides legal advice and counsel to business units regarding labor and employment matters that arise in mergers and acquisitions. -- -- -- -- -- -- Provides other legal support where and when needed, provides additional support and assistance to Goodyear's counsel responsible for: HR strategy and employee relations, Employee benefits, Health and safety, Litigation and Intellectual property. Professional Experience and Competencies: -- -- -- -- -- Must be an experienced attorney with the requisite legal background and communication and interpersonal skills to function successfully in a highly visible, high-volume, and challenging position. -- -- -- -- Minimum of 8 years of substantive experience in a major law firm with direct responsibility for handling complex employment matters with particular experience in labor relations and employment claims and/or similar in-house experience. -- -- -- -- Preferred candidate will have extensive experience in counseling large clients with nationwide operations. -- -- -- -- Excellent negotiation, leadership, organizational, presentation, interpersonal and communication skills, both verbal and written. -- -- -- -- Sound judgment; self-starter with strong understanding of basic business principles and a sense of urgency. -- -- -- -- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with an ability to develop legally compliant, business-oriented and cost-efficient solutions. -- -- -- -- Ability to manage a heavy workload and comfortable working with a variety of professional, non-legal personnel. -- -- -- -- Must be team-oriented and possess the ability to think creativity, proactively and be a legal business partner to internal clients Education: -- -- -- -- -- Must have a JD degree from an accredited law school and be an active member of the bar.

Keywords: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Akron , Senior Legal Counsel - U.S. Employment & Labor Relations, Legal , Akron, Ohio