Coast | Full-Time, Permanent | Nova Scotia
Coast is seeking a Senior Labour Relations Advisor to provide dedicated, high-quality labour and employee relations support across client operations, including unionized long-term care environments in Nova Scotia. This role is the go-to practitioner for collective agreement administration, grievance management, workplace investigations, and complex employee relations matters.
He/she acts as a steady, professional presence, ensuring that all labour and employee-related matters are handled with consistency, fairness, and sound judgment. The role requires a solid command of employment and labour law, disciplined follow-through, and the ability to navigate complex people issues with firmness and discretion. The Advisor works closely with corporate and client-site leadership to maintain a well-structured, policy-driven, and compliant workplace culture.
This is a specialist labour and employee relations role. Coast invests in its people: the successful candidate will be supported in advancing toward their CPHR designation and trained to leverage modern tools — including AI-assisted drafting, research, and case management — to work efficiently and to a high professional standard. Access to Coast’s broader HR team is available as a professional resource for matters outside the core labour and employee relations mandate.
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Key Responsibilities
1. Labour and Employee Relations
- Lead or support workplace investigations, disciplinary actions, and conflict resolution across client operations.
- Administer and interpret collective agreements; manage grievances from receipt through resolution or arbitration referral, ensuring responses meet legal and ethical standards.
- Advise management on employee relations, performance issues, accommodation, and termination decisions.
- Support collective bargaining preparation and participate on employer bargaining committees.
- Build strong working relationships with client-side leadership and union representatives while maintaining clear professional boundaries.
- Promote respectful workplace practices and support the development of management accountability.
2. Workplace Investigations
- Conduct and support investigations involving harassment, bullying, discrimination, workplace violence, misconduct, and resident- or client-related concerns.
- Prepare investigation reports with findings, analysis, and recommendations that withstand legal and arbitration scrutiny.
- Ensure investigations comply with Nova Scotia OHS harassment regulations (effective September 2025) and procedural fairness requirements.
3. Policy and Governance
- Interpret, apply, and support enforcement of HR and labour relations policies in line with Nova Scotia and federal labour standards.
- Ensure procedures are applied consistently across all client sites and business units.
- Maintain up-to-date knowledge of legislative changes affecting employment, labour, and human rights compliance.
4. Case Management and Documentation
- Ensure all cases, investigations, and disciplinary actions are accurately documented and securely stored.
- Prepare written summaries, letters, and reports — including termination, suspension, grievance response, and accommodation correspondence — for leadership review or legal follow-up.
- Track the status of ongoing matters and ensure timely resolution and closure.
- Maintain full confidentiality and demonstrate sound judgment in handling sensitive information.
5. Compliance and Reporting
- Ensure all labour and employee relations practices align with provincial and federal employment standards, occupational health and safety legislation, and privacy laws.
- Conduct periodic reviews of files, collective agreement compliance, and policy acknowledgements.
- Prepare concise reports and summaries for executive review, highlighting labour relations risks and trends.
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Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Industrial/Labour Relations, Business Administration, or a related field.
- Minimum of five (5) years of progressive HR experience, with meaningful exposure to labour relations in a unionized environment.
- Demonstrated experience in grievance management, collective agreement interpretation, and workplace investigations.
- Strong working knowledge of Nova Scotia Labour Standards, Trade Union Act, Human Rights, and OH&S legislation.
- Exceptional written communication, documentation, and analytical skills.
- Comfort with technology and a willingness to adopt AI-assisted tools for drafting, research, and case management.
- High personal integrity and professional resilience in managing complex employee matters.
- CPHR designation, active candidacy, or eligibility required; support toward completion provided.
- Experience in long-term care or other unionized environments considered a strong asset.
- Valid driver’s licence and willingness to travel to client sites.
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Position Details
- Job Type: Full-Time, Permanent
- Employer: Coast
- Location: Nova Scotia — travel to client sites required
- Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience, plus benefits
Pay: $70,000.00-$90,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company pension
- Dental care
- Extended health care
- Life insurance
- Mileage reimbursement
- On-site parking
- Paid time off
- RRSP match
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision care
Application question(s):
- Have you personally managed grievances through the formal grievance procedure, up to or including arbitration referral?
- Have you personally conducted formal workplace investigations and authored the resulting investigation reports?
Experience:
- HR Experience in a Unionized Environment: 3 years (required)
Licence/Certification:
- Driving Licence (required)
- CPHR (preferred)
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Halifax, NS B3P 2R3
