Employee Relations Partner - People Services

Employee Relations (ER) Partner

Location: Hybrid - Attached to Solihull (Expectation to travel UK wide)

Full Time, Permanent (37.5 hour per week)

Competitive salary plus benefits

Make a difference every day. At Serco, we deliver essential public services that make a real difference to people’s lives. As an Employee Relations Partner, you’ll play a key role in ensuring that Serco operates ethically, lawfully, and fairly across our UK business. You’ll be the go-to expert for all matters relating to employment law, managing Employment Tribunal and ACAS Early Conciliation activity, and providing commercially focused advice to managers and People & Culture colleagues. This is an exciting opportunity to make a tangible impact by guiding fair outcomes, protecting Serco’s reputation, and supporting our people.

What you’ll be doing:

• Manage all ACAS Early Conciliation and Employment Tribunal (ET) activity efficiently and cost‑effectively.
• Conduct advocacy at Employment Tribunal hearings (preliminary and final) where required.
• Prioritise and assess incoming claims, providing timely risk evaluations and advising stakeholders on prospects and strategy.
• Draft responses to ET claims, devise case management and defence strategies, and identify key risk areas.
• Prepare documentation for hearings, including witness statements, tribunal bundles, counter‑schedules of loss, and skeleton arguments.
• Liaise professionally and effectively with external stakeholders such as ACAS, unions, solicitors, and barristers.
• Advise on settlement agreements, including drafting and negotiation, ensuring outcomes are expedient and cost‑effective.
• Provide guidance on complex internal employee relations cases and contribute to proactive learning initiatives to reduce ER risk.
• Provide timely briefings on employment law updates and case law implications, supporting the design of relevant training materials.

What you’ll bring:

• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and data protection.
• While a degree in employment law or a related discipline is an advantage, we’re equally interested in those who bring proven, practical experience in employment law and employee relations.
• CIPD qualified or working towards.
• Proven experience advising on all aspects of employment law, ideally within an in‑house environment.
• Experience managing Employment Tribunal cases and working with ACAS conciliations.
• Strong negotiation and advocacy skills, with the confidence to represent the business externally.
• Proactive and solutions‑focused, with a high level of attention to detail and commercial awareness.

Additional information:

This role requires regular travel to attend meetings, hearings, and other events across the UK.

Why Serco:

• Meaningful work – you’ll help ensure that our people are treated fairly and that our operations uphold the highest ethical and legal standards.
• A supportive, collaborative culture where you can influence real change.
• Opportunities to develop your expertise in employment law, ER strategy, and case management.
• Flexible and varied work – including involvement in hearings, projects, and people initiatives.

What we offer:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays.
• Annual leave purchase scheme.
• Up to 6% contributory pension scheme.
• Flexible working options.
• Serco discounts which include cinema, Merlin entertainment and online shopping discounts, and discounts on mobile phone plans and leisure centre memberships.
• A range of benefits to support the health and wellbeing of you and your family such as Employee Assistance Programme, Simply Health Cash Plans, and more.
• A wealth of career development training to suit your future aspirations.
• A safe and supportive culture.
• A company passionate about diversity and inclusion.