Employee Relations Lead

Toronto, ON
Permanent
Full-time

1 month ago

Rippling gives businesses one place to run HR, IT, and Finance. It brings together all of the workforce systems that are normally scattered across a company, like payroll, expenses, benefits, and computers. For the first time ever, you can manage and automate every part of the employee lifecycle in a single system.Take onboarding, for example. With Rippling, you can hire a new employee anywhere in the world and set up their payroll, corporate card, computer, benefits, and even third-party apps like Slack and Microsoft 365-all within 90 seconds.Based in San Francisco, CA, from the world's top investors-including Kleiner Perkins, Founders Fund, Sequoia, Greenoaks, and Bedrock-and was named one of America's best startup employers by Forbes.We prioritize candidate safety. Please be aware that all official communication will only be sent from @ addresses.What is an employer of record (EOR)?An Employer of Record (EOR) is a service provider that allows companies to legally hire and work with employees in foreign countries without establishing their own legal entity in that country. This is made possible through a legal arrangement where the EOR establishes its own legal entity in the country and hires employees on behalf of the client company. This arrangement offers a viable solution for companies that wish to expand their global reach without investing in setting up a legal entity in every country where they operate.About the roleAs a EOR Employee Relations Lead you will manage complex, high-impact client EOR escalations across multiple countries and internal teams, including payroll, benefits, product, compliance, and complex employee relations matter. This role acts as the central point of coordination during critical situations, driving structured resolution, aligning cross-functional stakeholders, mitigating retention risk, and ensuring timely, compliant outcomes. You will operate in high-visibility scenarios that require executive presence, operational rigor, and strong judgment, without direct people management responsibilities.What You Will Do

Global Escalation Ownership: Lead end-to-end management of complex client escalations involving multiple countries, cross-functional stakeholders (including payroll, benefits, legal, product, and operations), and elevated retention risk.
Cross-Country Case Management: Navigate complex employee relations issues and cross-country employee termination matters for high visibility clients across international employment frameworks, regulatory requirements, and time zone complexities while ensuring legally compliant and globally consistent outcomes, in partnership with local HR Advisory teams.
Client Leadership: Serve as the primary client-facing lead during escalations and complex employee relations issues, delivering clear, transparent updates and managing expectations to preserve trust and mitigate churn risk.
Escalation Triage and Action Planning: Conduct structured intake assessments, define scope and severity, identify root causes, and build comprehensive resolution plans with clear milestones and accountability.
Cross-Functional Orchestration: Coordinate across Product, EOR HR/Ops, Legal, Payroll, Operations, Sales, and other teams to align on strategy, remove blockers, and drive timely execution.
Governance and Communication Structure: Establish escalation channels (e.g., war rooms, executive updates, structured cadences), define roles and decision-making pathways, and ensure consistent documentation.
Conflict Mediation and Consensus Building: Facilitate collaborative problem-solving sessions and mediate competing priorities to drive aligned, solution-oriented outcomes.
Post-Mortem and Preventive Controls: Conduct structured root cause analyses following resolution, identify systemic gaps, and partner cross-functionally to implement durable process improvements.

What You Will Need

8+ years of experience in global HR operations, EOR services, client escalation management, or complex cross-functional program leadership in a fast-paced environment.
Demonstrated experience managing high-severity client issues involving multiple countries and cross-departmental stakeholders.
Strong working knowledge of international employment frameworks, compliance considerations, and operational HR processes.
Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and drive alignment without direct authority.
Experience handling retention-risk situations, including clients threatening churn or requesting executive visibility.
Exceptional project management capabilities, including structured planning, risk assessment, and milestone tracking.
Ability to operate with flexibility across timezones and provide support during escalations outside standard business hours when required.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to deliver concise executive-level updates.
Strong analytical and root cause investigation skills.
High emotional intelligence and composure under pressure.

Additional InformationRippling is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce and do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, veteran or military status, or any other legally protected characteristics, Rippling is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities who need assistance during the hiring process. To request a reasonable accommodation, please email accommodations@rippling.comRippling highly values having employees working in-office to foster a collaborative work environment and company culture. Rippling considers working in the office, at least three days a week under current policy, to be an essential function of the employee's role.#LI-hybridA variety of factors are considered when determining someone's compensation-including a candidate's professional background, experience, and location. Final offer amounts may vary from the amounts listed below.

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