People and Culture Business Partner

On May 5, 2021, Toronto City Council approved the creation of the Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation (“TSHC”) to provide seniors with safe, well-maintained homes and improved living conditions, services and experiences. TSHC will interact with and support senior tenants in new ways, with the goal of ensuring seniors can age in place with dignity and in comfort. On June 1, 2022, all 83 Toronto Community Housing Corporation (“TCHC”) seniors’ buildings transitioned to be managed by the new Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation. The new corporation will continue to be focused on meeting the needs of senior tenants through the Integrated Service Model.

TCHC will continue to own the buildings and be responsible for major capital. TSHC will lease the buildings from TCHC and be responsible for minor capital and maintenance. TSHC will be entering into agreements for shared services where appropriate with TCHC and TSHC will be focused on tenant facing issues, including health and social supports.

Please be advised that this opportunity is for Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation and not Toronto Community Housing

Position Summary

In this role you will be responsible for implementing and delivering a wide range of strategic and operational people and culture programs and services, with a primary focus on labour and employee relations matters. This includes the administration, interpretation and application of various collective agreements, policies, programs and the handling of investigations, complaints/disputes and grievances in a manner that aligns with TSHC's strategic priorities. The People and Culture Business Partner will also provide advice and guidance in all areas of people and culture administration to assigned client groups as the first point of contact, and participates in people and culture business related initiatives.

Responsibilities

Employee and Labour Relations

• Provide a range of coaching, counselling and strategic advice to clients in the areas of human rights, labour and employee relations, interpretation of collective agreements, employment and labour legislation, policies and procedures.
• Responsible for the timely and effective delivery of human resource services including but not limited to consultation and advice in all disciplinary and non-disciplinary matters, investigations, complaints, attendance management, performance management, and workplace accommodations to clients to ensure business objectives are met.
• Support the grievance process including but not limited to grievance tracking, scheduling, investigating, attendance at Step 2 grievance hearings, preparation of written responses and settlement agreements.
• Interpret and administer multiple collective agreements, assists in the preparation and representation for grievance hearings and conflict resolution and the promotion of a positive labour relations environment.
• Participate in labour management meetings and other meetings with union representative on a variety of labour relations matters.

Employee and Labour Relations

• Provide a range of coaching, counselling and strategic advice to clients in the areas of human rights, labour and employee relations, interpretation of collective agreements, employment and labour legislation, policies and procedures.
• Responsible for the timely and effective delivery of human resource services including but not limited to consultation and advice in all disciplinary and non-disciplinary matters, investigations, complaints, attendance management, performance management, and workplace accommodations to clients to ensure business objectives are met.
• Support the grievance process including but not limited to grievance tracking, scheduling, investigating, attendance at Step 2 grievance hearings, preparation of written responses and settlement agreements.
• Interpret and administer multiple collective agreements, assists in the preparation and representation for grievance hearings and conflict resolution and the promotion of a positive labour relations environment.
• Participate in labour management meetings and other meetings with union representative on a variety of labour relations matters.

HR Advisory Services

• Responds to queries from assigned client groups and provides coaching and advice on a range of people and culture functions including talent acquisition, health and safety, disability management, training and development, policy and collective agreement interpretation and compliance, payroll and benefits, performance management, human rights complaints, harassment and workplace violence investigations, ensuring that all relevant legislated, collective agreement and policy obligations are met.
• Responsible for conducting thorough and effective interviews and workplace investigations, related to violations of company policy, employment laws and employee complaints, including making recommendations on outcomes and next steps.
• Interprets and evaluates client’s needs, identifies, and makes recommendations to mitigate risks, facilitates and/or manages problem solving and when required, presents alternative solutions and resolutions.
• Communicates corporate people and culture initiatives, policies, procedures, best practices/guidelines to clients/employees and supports clients in integrating people and culture processes, practices, and programs into their day-to-day business operations.
• Maintains knowledge of trends and changes in employment legislation, internal policies, and people and culture best practices to provide clients with practical guidance through people and culture management processes across the HR lifecycle.
• Support talent acquisition strategies and processes including development of staffing plans, review and refinement of job design, job evaluation, implementation of end-to-end recruitment processes from posting to orientation and onboarding, vacancy monitoring, fixed term employee contract management, etc.
• Collaborates with our union partners to discuss and resolve employee/union complaints, grievances, and performance matters. Participates in Labour Management Meetings, grievances and arbitration as required.

People and Culture Initiatives

• Partners with the Learning and Organizational Development Advisor and TSHC leadership to outline the organization’s people and culture goals, identify opportunities to improve processes and provide recommendations to build desired organizational culture and values, improve employee engagement and morale and boost performance.
• Participates in organization wide people and culture initiatives and long-term people and culture planning to support business priorities and objectives.
• Contributes to the design, development, optimization, and implementation of people and culture policies, including researching people and culture related issues and recommending procedures, processes, and other solutions.
• Provides recommendations on program execution at the client level.
• Provides support with compensation, benefits, pension, job evaluation, and other activities, ensuring compliance with and consistency in the application of legislation, internal standards, policies, and procedures.
• Supports feedback processes and other employee input initiatives (e.g., Employee Surveys, etc.).
• Leads and/or actively participates in people and culture projects, aligned to key identified people and culture priorities.
• Contributes to the development of people and culture communications strategy to ensure consistent and coordinated communications are provided to employee groups.

General HR Administration

• Works with HR information systems and reporting to understand trends and outliers, and facilitate fact based, metrics driven client decisions.
• Collects/analyzes human resources data and make recommendations to promote continual improvement.
• Supports Employee and Labour Relations in the preparation of background information and maintains status/progress of issues/resolutions to support labour/management meetings, the grievance process, arbitration, and mediation as required.
• Supports transformation projects and organizational changes with data analysis, project management and execution of implementation plans.
• Partners with the People and Culture team to develop and implement people and culture solutions that meet the distinctive challenges and needs of the Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation (TSHC).
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Degree in Human Resources, or related degree and relevant experience.
• Minimum 6 years of experience in a broad spectrum of people and culture functions with at least 2 years in a labour relations consultant/advisor role in a unionized environment.
• Professional certification (CHRP) is preferred.
• Training in mediation, conflict management and change management are an asset.
  In-depth knowledge of a broad range of HR management best practices, processes, and procedures.
• Knowledge of HR-related legislation such as Ontario Employment Standards Act, Labour Relations Act, WSIB, Human Rights Code, Pay Equity Act, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disability Act,
• Occupational Health and Safety Act.
  In-depth problem solving, planning, analytical, organization, and consensus building skills.
• Ability to maintain the integrity of confidential information.
• Active listening skills in order to understand the full extent of client queries/issues.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to effectively multi-task.
• Ability to quickly build business and organizational acumen and an understanding of TSHC’s overall strategy and operations to effectively manage organizational and business needs and challenges.
• Ability to utilize critical thinking and analytical skills regularly to identify issues and trends, develop solutions and/or recommendations to address root cause.
• Ability to utilize independent judgement and professional expertise in recommending resolutions.
• Self motivated, with the ability to pivot with changing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills required to work effectively with all levels of staff and management.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, etc.) and other internal applications, as required.

What’s next

Once you apply, we’ll review your resume and cover letter to determine if your skills and experience match the qualifications for the role. Only qualified candidates will be contacted to move forward in the hiring process. If you are contacted, the process will include one or more interviews and/or assessments and reference checks.