Job Description

About the job.

National Highways are seeking an experienced HR Manager to join our Employee Relations (ER) team based in Birmingham on a fixed term contract for 18 months.

In this role, you will lead on high-risk and complex ER matters, providing expert advice, guidance and practical solutions to managers across the business. This will include supporting cases such as disciplinaries, grievances, ACAS conciliations and Employment Tribunals.

You will play a key role in protecting the organisation by ensuring legal compliance and consistent application of National Highways policies and procedures. Working closely with Senior HR Business Partners, you will help drive and embed ER initiatives, while building manager capability to confidently lead on people and ER matters.

This role also offers the opportunity to contribute to wider HR projects and support the review and development of ER policies and practices.

• Lead on complex Employee Relations (ER) cases, including disciplinaries, grievances, performance, absence, flexible working, and Employment Tribunal claims, ensuring effective case management from initiation to resolution.
• Provide expert, risk-based ER advice to managers and stakeholders, applying employment law knowledge and working closely with HRBPs and legal teams to mitigate organisational risk.
• Drive the development and implementation of ER policies, strategy, and guidance, acting as a subject matter expert and leading key ER workstreams across the business.
• Coach and support people managers, building capability to manage ER issues effectively and ensuring consistent application of HR policies and best practice.
• Build strong stakeholder relationships, collaborating with senior HRBPs, trade unions, and business leaders to support organisational objectives and foster positive employee relations.

About you.

• Proven experience managing complex, end-to-end Employee Relations cases, demonstrating strong practical application of HR and ER principles.
• Sound knowledge of UK employment law and its application in workplace scenarios, including risk assessment and compliance.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with evidence of building effective relationships and influencing managers at all levels.
• Experience of advising, coaching and supporting people managers to handle ER matters confidently and consistently.
• Understanding of governance, compliance and regulatory requirements within an HR/ER environment.
• CIPD level 5 qualification or working towards CIPD Level 7 qualification

About us.

Here at National Highways, we manage and improve England’s motorways and major A roads, helping our customers have safer, smoother and more reliable journeys. Our priorities are safety, customers and delivery, and at the core of this, are our values of passion, integrity, safety, teamwork and ownership.

Our HR directorate includes a wide range of services to support our people to be the best they can be, and to enable the organisation to achieve its goals and objectives.

We're fully committed to making National Highways a great place to work. We want an inclusive culture where our people feel informed, motivated, engaged - and always reaching for high levels of performance.

Through our People Strategy we're also building our company's resilience, making it better prepared for the future - and we're always striving to improve our day-to-day services.

External candidates will be offered a starting salary at the lower end of the pay scale, while current employees will be appointed in accordance with our established pay policy.

We are committed to creating a diverse environment and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

Why you should join us

At National Highways we believe in a connected country. We are passionate about creating a culture where colleagues feel connected, included and enjoy greater wellbeing to achieve this. We’re proud that as an organisation we are continually striving to do better and actively encourage and support our colleagues to do the same with their careers.

So, if you put safety first, take ownership of your work, show passion for what you do, work effectively in a team, and demonstrate integrity in how you do it – then you’ll be a great fit for our organisation.

A connected and sustainable working approach has been adopted across National Highways. For some roles, this means being able to work in a hybrid way spending up to 60% of time working from a remote location such as home.

We offer many different ways to work flexibly and we’re open to discuss part-time working, job shares, and flexible start and finish times.

Please wait until the interview stage before asking us about flexibility, and we will explore what is possible.

Our benefits package

• Our total reward package includes basic salary, the potential for a performance related bonus
• Contributory pension scheme with employer contribution of up to 10%
• Annual Leave starting at 26 days (plus Bank Holidays) rising by 1 day each year up to 31 days (plus Bank Holidays)
• Flexible hours and an approach driven by connected and sustainable working which includes hybrid working
• Life assurance of 4 times annual salary
• Health and wellbeing support, including an Employee Assistance Programme, available 24/7 365 days and network of mental health first aiders. Plus access to a wellbeing app to enhance your self-care 24/7, Occupational health service and flu vaccines
• A cycle to work scheme for the purchase of a bicycle and equipment for healthy, low carbon travel
• Significant investment in your career development, through learning and development, talent management, coaching, mentoring and on job experience

And we are

• Family friendly with enhanced maternity leave and pay, paternity leave (15 days), shared parental leave, adoption leave. Plus access to financial support for holiday play schemes and paid special leave (up to 5 days pa), eg for caring responsibilities
• Money friendly with access to a discounts platform including over 3000 discounts for supermarkets, eating out, leisure, holidays. Alongside a financial wellbeing programme
• Community friendly – offering paid leave to volunteer, 3 days basic/year

If you are successful, it is key to know all offers of employment are subject to satisfactory completion of our pre-employment checks which include:

• Right to work check
• 3 year employment history references
• DBS criminal record check
• Social media and adverse journalism check
• Driving licence check (if applicable)
• Fit to work questionnaire (for all), followed by a medical check (if applicable)
• Qualifications and/or professional membership check (if applicable)

And finally

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