Employee Relations Operations Lead in Liverpool

A bit about us:

Liverpool is home to vibrant, energetic, and engaged communities, people who take real ownership of their local area and are passionate about making our city a better place. We've got ambitious targets to meet and we need people who are driven, dynamic and ready to deliver the very best for our communities. Public service is more important than ever, and this role represents a real opportunity to make a difference to our communities by transforming the way we work and placing our residents at the heart of everything we do. Working at Liverpool City Council provides an opportunity to contribute to your community and make a positive impact on the lives of residents. Our values shape how we work to deliver public services, and how we communicate with the residents we serve. We care about the best outcomes for local people, through our public services.

We are proud of our world-famous thriving city with its rich culture, as well as affordable housing, good schools, beautiful green spaces – there’s really something for everyone!

The role:

Are you an experienced Employee Relations leader looking to take the next step in your career? Liverpool City Council is seeking an Employee Relations Operations Lead to lead and develop our Employee Relations Service. This is an exciting opportunity to manage a team of Senior Employee Relations Partners and Employee Relations Partners whilst overseeing the delivery of a high-quality, professional, and customer-focused employee relations service across one of the UK's largest local authorities.

As the Employee Relations Operations Lead, you will provide strategic and operational leadership across a broad range of employee relations activity, including disciplinary, grievance, attendance, capability, performance, flexible working, redeployment and organisational change matters. You will ensure the consistent delivery of high-quality advice and support, enabling managers to effectively manage people issues whilst reducing organisational risk.

You will lead and develop a team of employee relations professionals, providing direction, coaching and oversight to ensure excellent service delivery. Working closely with senior leaders, HR colleagues, Legal Services, Trade Unions and other key stakeholders, you will use performance information, casework intelligence and operational insight to drive continuous improvement, inform policy development and enhance employee relations practice across the organisation.

We're looking for someone with:

• Significant experience leading employee relations services and managing complex, sensitive and high-risk employment matters.
• Experience of leading, developing and motivating HR or employee relations teams.
• Extensive knowledge of employment law, employee relations practice and local government employment issues.
• Strong leadership, coaching, influencing and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience of using management information, performance data and organisational insight to improve services and inform decision-making.
• The ability to balance strategic thinking with operational delivery in a fast-paced environment.

In return, you will join a supportive and ambitious People & Organisational Culture Team at the heart of the Council's people agenda. This is a unique opportunity to shape employee relations practice, influence organisational outcomes and make a real difference to our workforce and the communities we serve.

Join us and help make Liverpool City Council a great place to work!

Our offer to you:

• At least 31 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 35 after 5 years’ service (pro rata if part time) - option to purchase further days
• Agile working (role dependent) - a “Flexibility First” approach to agile working, where flexibility is the norm rather than the exception
• Part of the Local Government Pension Scheme – option to join the AVC Scheme
• Progression - opportunities and training through a wide range of high quality learning
• Health and Wellbeing - offer including Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work and Travel Pass Schemes
• Drive Time – a salary sacrifice car lease scheme
• Family friendly policies with enhanced leave
• Discounted Gym Memberships
• Employee Volunteering Scheme

Next steps:

Closing date: midnight on Sunday 4 October 2026

Interview date: mid-to-late October 2026 (to be confirmed)

Interview type: face-to-face

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early. Once the role has closed, you will not be able to submit an application, and we are unable to reopen the vacancy for you to complete it. We strongly recommend submitting your application well in advance of the closing date to avoid disappointment.

If you would like any further information or an informal discussion, please contact Hiba Jangoan at hiba.jangoan@liverpool.gov.uk.

Liverpool City Council is committed to fostering a workforce representative of the communities we serve. As an Equal Opportunities Employer, we believe in appointing candidates based on their skills, experience, qualifications, and abilities. To support this commitment, we guarantee an interview to candidates from under-represented groups who meet the minimum essential criteria for the role. If you require any reasonable adjustments in line with the Equality Act 2010, such as an application form in a different format or additional time to complete your application, please contact us at recruitment@liverpool.gov.uk.

Eligibility to work in the UK will be verified in the final stages of the selection process. All candidates must either already have a right to work in the UK before commencing employment or meet the Home Office criteria for Visa sponsorship. Candidates who require sponsorship should evaluate the Home Office eligibility criteria for a Skilled Worker visa before applying.