Chief Counsel/First Assistant Secretary

SES Band 2

About The Department Of Employment And Workplace Relations

We are committed to empowering futures, ensuring rights and enriching lives. We support people to have safe, secure and well-paid work with the skills for a sustainable future as we ourselves strive to be a model employer. We provide the framework for fair and productive relationships between employers and employees. We also oversee skills development and training initiatives to support those entering the workforce or re-training to take advantage of emerging employment opportunities. With us your work directly contributes to shaping the employment landscape. Whether you're engaging in policy development, program implementation, or direct support services, your efforts will have a tangible impact on job seekers, employees and the economy by giving them a framework to build a future anchored and realised through employment.

The Role

As Chief Counsel/First Assistant Secretary of the Workplace Relations Legal Division, you will lead a team responsible for:

• providing legal advice to government on workplace relations, work health and safety, and workers' compensation framework matters
• supporting the development of legislative reform, and managing workplace relations litigation involving the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations

The Chief Counsel, along with the Workplace Relations Legal Division, works with the 3 policy divisions in the Workplace Relations Group, as well as the Office of the Chief Economist, throughout the design process of legislative policy matters, to ensure an integrated approach to reforms.

Duties and Responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities include:

• Leading the division to provide independent, expert legal advice to the Minister and the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations on workplace relations, statutory appointments, work health and safety, and workers' compensation
• Leading collaboration with departmental colleagues and across the APS to support the development of legislation using a project management approach
• Leading the division to manage workplace relations litigation involving the Minister
• Overseeing statutory appointments to workplace relations portfolio agencies and bodies
• Contributing to corporate priorities, such as those relating to mentoring, diversity and inclusion, employee networks and cultural capability.

The successful candidate will have a strong legal background (and be admitted as a legal practitioner) with experience in legal advising and litigation in workplace relations and/or experience in legislative development. They will need to be able to work effectively with policy colleagues. They will also be an outstanding leader and manager.

Qualifications And Education

Mandatory:

• Tertiary qualification, such as a law degree, from an Australian tertiary institution or a comparable overseas qualification.
• Able to be admitted as a practitioner, however described, of the High Court or the Supreme Court of an Australian State or Territory.

Eligibility

Our successful candidate will need to hold a valid Negative Vetting 1 clearance to undertake the role. Citizenship to be eligible for employment with the Department, you must be an Australian Citizen or, in limited circumstances, in the process of obtaining it.

Don’t meet all the role requirements? At DEWR we are dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workforce and seek to recruit staff with a wide range of backgrounds, skill levels, disciplines and working styles. If this role resonates with you and you are excited about making an impact, but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Please refer to the Job Information Pack for more information about the role.