Join the World's Top Legal Talent Network

Together, WE enable individuals to look, feel, and be their true selves. Wella Company is one of the world’s leading beauty companies, comprised of a family of iconic brands such as Wella Professionals, Clairol, OPI, Nioxin and ghd. With 6,000 employees globally, presence in over 100 countries, Wella Company and its brands enable consumers to look, feel, and be their true selves. As innovators in the hair and nail industry, Wella Company empowers its people to delight consumers, inspire beauty professionals, engage communities, and deliver sustainable growth to its stakeholders. For additional information about the Wella Company please visit : www.wellacompany.com

THE ROLE We are looking for an in-house labor and employment counsel, to be based in New York, USA, reporting to the SVP legal Global operations, corporate, Labor& employment, IT & Digital. This is a unique and outstanding opportunity for the successful candidate to be a member of Wella’s Legal team as well as a critical partner for Wella’s Human Resources in the US. The successful candidate will be able to contribute to the legal function and support the company’s vision and growth.

The role requires:

• A strong knowledge of the labor and employment requirements under US law (most importantly California law and NYC law)
• Experience counseling business partners in a truly international and dynamic business environment
• An effective ability to provide clear and solution-oriented guidance, often in complex and quickly evolving projects
• Track record of successfully providing legally compliant solutions in a fast-paced and demanding environment
• Strong social and communication skills are required, with the ability to build relationships of trust with HR, other Legal colleagues, management, and employees with various backgrounds and different styles

Key responsibilities included, but not limited to the following:

• Provide expert end-to-end legal advice and counsel to US senior management and business teams as well as HR team members on a wide range of labor and employment law issues, including but not limited to employment contracts, terminations, discrimination, harassment, wage and hour compliance, and workplace policies
• Advise and partner with Wella business partners and US HR senior management to allow legally compliant strategic decision-making.
• Partner with employee relations lead to provide legal and strategic guidance on workforce restructuring, including reorganizations, mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures (including matters giving rise to significant works council/TUPE exposure), to ensure compliance and minimize legal risk
• Advise project teams on the way to navigate compliantly among and through employee representatives, unions, and all other organizations or authorities related to labor and employment rights and obligations.
• Monitor and analyze changes in labor and employment laws globally, and proactively advise the organization on potential impacts and necessary adjustments, including in relation to new legislative trends in the US and Americas region, to act compliantly
• Support local HR for employment-related legal questions /concerns on labor and employment
• Provide legal advice (directly or through external counsel) and partner with the HR lead for employee relations matters to ensure, among other things, that employee relations programs, policies, investigations, operational processes, and procedures are legally compliant.
• Work with the USA region’s HR team, the HR lead for employee relations, and the US regional functions to ensure programs, policies, and procedures are defined, negotiated, and deployed in due respect of employee representativeness institutions (work councils, unions if any, employee elected representative...) rights and obligations.
• Collaborate with Compliance and HR for labor-related investigations that may occur in the US or that concerns the US region in order to advise the legally acceptable mitigation schemes or the required actions.
• Manage and oversee employment-related litigation and disputes, collaborating with external legal counsel as needed
• Collaborate with internal communication to ensure compliance with labor and employment laws for employee communications for US employees.
• Coordinate with outside counsel to obtain US law-related legal advice and manage outside counsel activities to ensure appropriate scoping and cost-effectiveness.
• Conduct training sessions for US HR teams, managers, and employees to ensure understanding and compliance with US labor and employment laws and regulations
• Partner with the European legal labor and employment legal director and the overall legal team to ensure consistency and alignment with overall legal strategies and objectives

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

• 15 plus years experience in employment law with a mix of law firm and a multinational company experience
• Solid track record in US employment law and management of external advisors.
• Experience as a strategic business advisor and comfortable operating in a visible role
• Prior experience within the Consumer/FMCG industry is preferred, but other regulated industries will also be considered.
• Demonstrable skills in managing as well as influencing risk-based decision-making.

LEADERSHIP CHARACTERISTICS

• A highly agile individual with solid business acumen, sound and confident judgment, professional courage, and unquestionable integrity
• A tenacious, initiative-taking, and resilient individual with the ability to deliver and ensure the execution of Wella Company’s employment and labor strategy with a good blend of operational experience and flexibility
• Adaptable and capable of adopting risk-based approaches to enable the appropriate directional change with initiatives to achieve the best results.
• Strong ability to simplify legal technicalities into pragmatic and practical recommendations for day-to-day compliance with labor laws.
• A highly collaborative, motivated, and inclusive leadership style to coach and develop team members
• Highly capable of sharing ideas articulately and openly to influence effectively, marshal buy-in, and drive change among people with different cultural and educational backgrounds
• An active listener with excellent interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to broaden discussions and work collaboratively in achieving actionable results through others without direct authority
• A highly responsive and trusting working style with a ‘can-do’ attitude and the confidence to make decisions when there is no immediate clear solution
• Well-organized and able to work with ambiguity and manage numerous projects and conflicting demands in a global environment
• Proven and clear oral and written communication skills in

EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS

• JD and appropriate bar qualifications (ideally either CA or NY or both)
• Second language skills a plus