ER & Policy Adviser

Employee Relations (ER) & Policy Adviser 

£41,000 to £48,000 plus great benefits (Work Level 6A)
We’re now working in a hybrid way, with colleagues dividing their time between home and the office. This role is predominantly home based, with some travel to Manchester (find out more about our hybrid working policy jobs.coop.co.uk/hybrid-working-policy)

6-month secondment 

We’re looking for a motivated Employee Relations (ER) and Policy Adviser to join our Culture and Colleague Experience team at Co-op. In this broad and varied role, you’ll work with a wide range of people across our business, gaining valuable experience as you go. You’ll collaborate closely with ER and people policy managers, supporting business change, contributing to projects, and helping us respond to legislative developments. If you bring the right skills and experience, you’ll have the chance to make a meaningful impact across all areas of our business while developing your career in a purpose-led organisation.

Why this job matters

This role plays a key part in shaping how we support our colleagues and create a positive working culture. From advising on employee relations matters to helping develop people policies that reflect our values, your work will influence how we respond to change and improve the colleague experience. You’ll help ensure our approach is fair, consistent, and aligned with both legal requirements and our ethical commitments. You’ll make a real difference to the way we work together across our Co-op.

What you’ll do

• Deliver expert advice to the people team on ER and policy issues across all Co-op business areas to make sure Co-op’s ER and policy plans are delivered effectively and in a compliant way 
• Design and deliver training and support to the people team on key ER and policy topics  
• Work with ER managers, supporting group-wide or business-led change projects by carrying out research, attending/ leading meetings, requesting and analysing relevant data and producing proposals
• Work with policy and wellbeing managers on development and delivery of new policies and wellbeing interventions which support our colleague experience strategy
• Develop, produce and maintain HR, colleague and manager guidance documents on a range of ER and policy matters
• Provide advice on more complex ER and policy queries 
• Liaise with TU representatives to co-ordinate activity with them on ER and policy issues, making sure that positive relationships are developed and maintained 
• Undertake research into ER/policy and employment law matters, producing recommendations on approaches 

This role would suit people who have 

• Previous experience of dealing with ER issues at either individual or collective level
• Experience of advising on HR policies including a good understanding of redundancy and TUPE legislation and processes
• Great communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to draft policies, guidance, and other formal documents clearly and accurately
• An interest in people policy and external trends and issues in this area
• The ability to work collaboratively across the business to influence and inspire change and improvement
• The ability to manipulate and analyse people data effectively
  
  

Building a diverse environment

We’re actively building diverse teams and we welcome applications from everyone. If you have a disability, we can make reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process according to your needs. We're also part of the Disability Confident scheme, meaning we'll always offer an interview to disabled candidates who apply through the scheme if they meet the minimum criteria for a job.

We'll ask whether you’d like to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme when you apply.

If we invite you to take part in the recruitment process for any of our jobs, we’ll ask you if you need any reasonable adjustments to enable you to participate.

You can find out more about our recruitment process at jobs.coop.co.uk/apply-process

You can find out more about the Disability Confident scheme at Disability Confident Scheme - Co-op Colleagues and more about our commitments to diversity and inclusion at Diversity and Inclusion

Please note that we may close applications for this role early.

As part of your application, you'll need to complete an online assessment. This assessment typically takes up to 50 minutes.If you're a current Co-op colleague, this does not need to be completed.