Senior HR Expert - Employee Relations (Western Europe)

Key Responsibilities

Complex employee relations (ER) matters

• Act as a senior HR expert for complex employee relations (ER) matters across your allocated countries, with particular in-depth knowledge across multiple European countries.

• Provide pragmatic, solutions-focused guidance on high-risk and sensitive cases, including performance management, misconduct, investigations, and terminations

• Navigate nuanced local legal frameworks with confidence, ensuring compliance while supporting business objectives

• Partner closely with internal stakeholders and Oyster customers to deliver clear, actionable advice on complex people issues in a timely and commercially-minded way

Country HR information and knowledge

• Draft country-specific information on a wide range of HR topics in our team format.

• Leverage AI and automation tools to streamline the generation, updating, and scaling of country-specific HR documentation, ensuring rapid and accurate knowledge delivery.

• Answer questions (in the form of tickets) on HR topics which are unable to be resolved by our Lifecycle Operations teams.

• Provide internal Oyster teams with training (or other methods of increasing their knowledge) on HR topics as needs arise.

• Look for opportunities to proactively improve country-specific HR information.

• Attend customer calls when there are questions on country-specific HR information.

• Work with other teams (e.g. Customer Support, Sales, Product, Legal) to problem-solve country-specific issues with your HR knowledge.

Continuous Improvement & High Performance

• Continuously audit and refine workflows and ways of working to reduce response times and elevate service quality.

• Actively leverage AI responsibly to maximize personal output, sharing best practices with the broader People Services team.

• Analyze recurring ticket trends and received queries to identify systemic issues, proactively building preventative resources for internal teams.

Projects

• Lead People Services and cross-functional projects as we work towards our Mission to enable companies to hire anyone, anywhere!

Core Requirements

• Deep employee relations expertise across multiple countries, with hands-on experience handling complex and high-risk cases (e.g. investigations, PIPs, terminations)

• 6+ years of ER & HR generalist experience, with a strong track record of supporting both internal stakeholders and external clients

• Cross-country HR experience, with a deep global focus (eg, APAC, EMEA, AMER, LATAM).

• Culturally aware, with a nuanced understanding of local HR practices, norms, and expectations across the regions you’ve supported

• An exceptional communicator, able to translate complex employment topics into practical, accessible advice (both in writing and in conversations)

• Solution-oriented and commercially minded, offering well-reasoned options and confident recommendations when faced with challenging people matters

• Skilled at stakeholder engagement, including presenting confidently to senior leaders, clients, and cross-functional teams

• Change-ready and growth-driven, excited by ambiguity and eager to challenge the status quo to improve processes and outcomes

• People-first mindset, with a strong focus on the experience of our customers, team members, and employees in everything you do

• Tech-Forward & AI-Literate: Digitally savvy with a strong curiosity for HR tech and AI; practical experience using AI tools to accelerate drafting, research, and data analysis is highly valued.

• Continuous Improvement Mindset: A proven track record of optimizing existing processes, scaling operations, and moving from reactive firefighting to proactive problem-solving.

• High-Performance Delivery: Thrives in a metrics-driven environment with a focus on speed, precision, and high-quality outcomes for global customers.

• [BONUS] Demonstrable experience with EORs (Employer of Record) & proven ability to navigate the complexities of international employment and compliance within EORs.

• [BONUS] Additional languages

• [BONUS] Have worked in a fast-paced, scaling startup or global tech environment

• [BONUS] Experience implementing AI tools or automation workflows within an HR or Ops function.

You'll also need

• A reliable home internet connection (or be able to get one)

• Fluent English language

How we work together at Oyster

Our values guide the work we do, the decisions we make, and the culture that makes us special. We make it happen. We drive change. We build and give trust, and we are a united team.

Our mission is to create a more equal world, one global hire at a time. Everything we do ladders up to our mission, and that doesn’t just mean building software. We develop programs, participate in workshops, and create dedicated teams to ensure we successfully support companies and knowledge workers in this new world of work.

We embrace asynchronous communication and collaborative work and share our practices in the Oyster Public HQ to help other global teams learn from our experiences.

How YOU work

With diverse locations, cultures, and needs, we created How YOU Work; a program supporting your whole human experience at Oyster:

• Work from anywhere: Oyster has no borders or HQ. As long as work is timely, your team is supported, and you're authorized to work where you live, you can work from anywhere.

• Paid time off: Enjoy 40 days off per year (including holidays and vacation), or more if required by your country.

• Mental health support: Access Plumm, our mental well-being service.

• Wellbeing allowance: Each month, receive a wellbeing allowance in your ThanksBen wallet. Spend it on a wide range of options; see the benefits catalogue for ideas.

• Flexible parental leave: All new parents are eligible for at least three months’ paid leave, with job protection for up to 12 months or as required locally.

• WFH stipend: Receive a stipend for your laptop and home office equipment to get you set up quickly.