Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

The Human Resource Section is responsible for the timely, accurate, equitable, effective and efficient delivery of all human resources management services, i.e. strategic staff planning, recruitment, staff administration, organizational and design and learning/career development, for the continuous development and improvement in human resource operations, policies, and methods to align with UN Women evolving business needs and for providing advisory support to the Executive Director in the formulation and implementation of UN Women's overall mission, strategy and plans of actions.

Under the guidance of the HR Director oversee the day-to-day activities for Workplace Relations. The Workplace Relations section is responsible for supporting the creation and maintenance of a productive and positive work environment in UN Women in which workforce feels comfortable and part of a global UN Women community in which they can work efficiently and effectively.

Duties and Responsibilities

Develop and implement new Human Resources (HR) policies, guidelines, procedures and standard operating procedures (SOPs) related to Workplace Relations, in line with UN Women’s goals and objectives:

• Advise the HR Director and members of the HR team on the development, modification and implementation of HR policies and practices on workplace relations issues;
• Develop, implement and maintain modern user-friendly Personnel Handbook reflecting UN Women’s mission, values and principles, in addition to current policy;
• Represent the HR team in joint bodies and working groups related to workplace relations, as appropriate.

Provide guidance and support on workplaces relations matters, including policies and procedures, events, UN Women values, orientation, rewards and recognition, global workforce survey and consultation with managers and staff globally:

• Provide advisory support to management and staff on the implementation of UN Women related policies and procedures related to workplace relations;
• Advise and counsel staff in respect of rights, responsibilities, code of conduct and difficulties associated with work;
• Monitor workforce well-being through global workforce survey and other tools and identify/propose appropriate programmes and action;
• Oversee the on-boarding and orientation of new comers through a formal orientation programme;
• Develop and implement rewards and recognition programmes;
• Act as focal point for HR on Occupational Health and Safety, business continuity and risk management issues;
• Ensure interviews with all separating staff are held globally and provide written feedback to the HR Director regarding trends revealed.

Provide support to supervisors and staff on workforce performance concerns, grievance resolution, disciplinary action:

• Act as internal conciliator, or mediator, providing advice and counsel to resolve workplace concerns and disputes raised by staff, staff council or supervisor, ensuring timely resolution of issues;
• Monitor and support the resolution of workplace performance-based concerns;
• Facilitate the work of external mediation and investigation bodies as appropriate, including the Ombudsman and Office of Audit and Investigation;
• Lead the global implementation of the UN Women’s Dignity Advisor programme.

Manage a global workplace recreational, wellness and informational activities programme:

• Coordinate activities related to sports, cultural awareness events, and health awareness and wellness seminars;
• Manage activities related to dependent care and family liaison.

Coordinate closely with other HR teams and other stakeholders on HR issues:

• Liaise with Regional HR teams on workplace relations, including UN Women’s values, orientation, grievances, disciplinary cases, rewards and recognition programmes;
• Collaborate on inter-agency policy issues, particularly in the  context of workplace relations;
• Interface with the UN Women Staff Council, maintaining strong and positive relationships.

Coordinate communication and outreach activities:

• Establish proactive HR information distribution channels, information sessions and workshops;
• Build awareness and understanding of HR policies related to workplace relations through consultation and engagement across the organization;
• Coordinate initiatives related to HR’s internal outreach platforms and HR Bulletin;
• Coordinate and report on the global workforce survey and HR working groups.

Reporting:

• Monitor and evaluate the impact of the workplace relation services in UN Women;
• Report on workplace relations activities to management.

People Management:

• Oversee the work of the HR Specialist – Learning and Development and HR Associate;
• Ensure supervised staff perform well, have regular performance appraisals, receive mentoring and coaching support and have development opportunities;
• Foster teamwork and communication among staff in the team, and across organizational boundaries.

Perform any other duties as assigned by supervisor.

Key Performance Indicators:

The successful delivery of effective policies practices, tools and systems in the field of Workplace Relations will have a positive impact on the delivery of the organization’s mission by enhancing staff wellbeing.

Competencies

Core values:

Integrity:

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Respect for Diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values:

• Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Developing and Empowering People / Coaching and Mentoring:

• Self-development, initiative-taking.

Working in Teams:

• Acting as a team player and facilitating team work.

Communicating Information and Ideas:

• Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively.

Self-management and Emotional intelligence:

• Creating synergies through self-control.

Conflict Management / Negotiating and Resolving Disagreements:

• Managing conflict.

Knowledge Sharing / Continuous Learning:

• Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

• Informed and transparent decision.  

Functional competencies

• Strong knowledge and expertise human resource management especially in the area employee engagement, mediation, communication;
• Solid and broad knowledge on human resource practices in employee engagement, wellness and HR policies in relation to disciplinary action, grievances and performance mediation;
• Ability to deal with conflict;
• Strong client orientation;
• Strong negation and diplomatic skills;
• Excellent written and spoken communication skills;
• Ability to write and present ideas, concepts and policy positions;
• Good understanding of UN Staff Regulations and Rules and human resources policies and procedures.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Human Resources, Business Administration, Psychology, Law, Organisational Development, Public Administration or other relevant social sciences.

Experience:

• Minimum of 7 years of progressively responsible experience in human resource management, staff engagement, organizational design or related area, with a focus on mediation, workplace relations, workforce wellness;
• Experience in developing and implementing HR policies on wellness, mediation and grievances;
• Experience in developing HR manuals, policies, procedures and/or guidelines;
• Experience in leading projects;
• Experience working in field offices is preferred. 

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Knowledge of one of the other UN official working language is an asset.

Application:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
• Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment, please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.