- People leadership team role, reporting to the Chief People & Culture Officer
- Large, complex, fast-growing public health service
- Shape workforce culture, capability and experience
About the organisation
Western Health is a major public health service in Victoria's west, delivering acute, subacute and community-based care to one of Australia's fastest-growing and most diverse populations. Operating across multiple sites and employing a large workforce of more than 13,000 people, Western Health works within a complex framework of enterprise agreements, awards and public sector legislation. Its People, Culture and Communications directorate is central to the organisation's strategic workforce agenda, supporting Western Health to attract, develop and retain the people it needs to deliver outstanding care. With a strong commitment to psychologically safe, inclusive and high-performing workplaces, Western Health offers the opportunity to contribute to a health service with significant purpose, scale and community impact.
About the role
Reporting to the Chief People & Culture Officer, the Director Employee Relations & Business Partnerships delivers enterprise leadership across Western Health's employee relations, industrial relations, workforce governance and strategic business partnering functions.
The Director offers authoritative advice to the Executive and senior leaders on the full range of ER and IR matters, including enterprise bargaining, organisational change, compliance with relevant legislation and industrial instruments, and representation before external bodies, including the Fair Work Commission and the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission. This is a highly influential role with responsibility for workforce risk, industrial strategy and substantial organisational transformation.
Leading a team of ten, the Director also coaches and develops executives and managers to build people management capability across the organisation, and holds accountability for a sizeable budget.
About you
You are an accomplished ER and IR leader with extensive executive-level background gained in a large, multifaceted and unionised environment, supported by relevant tertiary credentials in human resources, industrial relations, employment law or a related discipline. Exposure in the Victorian public health sector, or a comparable environment, including knowledge of public health awards and enterprise agreements, is highly regarded.
Your knowledge of employment legislation, enterprise agreements, industrial instruments and case law is high-level, and you are confident representing an organisation before tribunals and regulatory bodies. As a trusted adviser to executives and boards, you bring sound judgement, strategic perspective and the ability to navigate challenging workforce matters with credibility and care. You are equally comfortable providing high-level counsel and ensuring disciplined operational delivery.
Experience leading workforce transformation, restructures and service redesign in large-scale settings is essential, as is capability in workforce governance and enterprise risk management. You build constructive relationships with unions, regulators and internal stakeholders, and lead teams with clarity, accountability and care.
You are energised by the opportunity to embrace a rare mandate to help shape the people agenda at scale within one of Victoria's most important and dynamic health services. Leverage your proactive leadership, deep employee and industrial relations expertise, strategic influence, empathy and pragmatic judgement, in making a lasting contribution to workforce culture, organisational performance and the experience of care for the communities Western Health serves.
DIRECTOR, EMPLOYEE RELATIONS & BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS in Melbourne employer: SHK Asia Pacific
As a leading specialist financial institution at the heart of Australia's financial system, we pride ourselves on fostering a collaborative and innovative work culture that empowers our employees to drive meaningful change. Our commitment to professional development ensures that you will have ample opportunities for growth, while our focus on leveraging technology and data not only enhances your skills but also contributes to the financial resilience of the community we serve. Join us to be part of a team that values your contributions and is dedicated to creating impactful solutions in a supportive environment.
