Labor Relations Specialist

Country Specialist, South Africa | HR & Employment Law

The Opportunity

Our client is a global Employer of Record that helps companies hire and pay people in countries where they have no entity. They run payroll, tax and compliance on their clients' behalf, and they have recently opened their own South African entity.

Their Country Specialist team gives each specialist a portfolio of countries to look after. They now need someone who already knows South African labour law inside out to own South Africa, including one of their most important clients, and who is curious enough to pick up other countries as well.

You would be the person clients trust when an employee issue gets tricky. There is a legal team behind you, but you are the one who turns their advice into clear, practical guidance.

What You'll Do

• Act as the trusted HR and employment law advisor for a key client with all South African employees
• Guide clients through performance management, PIPs, disciplinaries, incapacity and terminations, making sure every step meets the substantive and procedural requirements of the LRA and BCEA.
• Work with local legal counsel on complex or high-risk cases and translate their advice into clear recommendations clients can act on.
• Be the go-to contact for South African employees on payroll, benefits, contracts, leave and offboarding (including UIF and statutory documentation).
• Look after a wider portfolio of countries across Africa, Europe and North America, learning each one and handling the day-to-day operational support.
• Keep country knowledge current, flag legislative changes and help improve processes and templates.

What We're Looking For

ESSENTIAL

• A degree or diploma in HR, Labour Relations, Industrial Psychology or Law.
• 3+ years in HR advisory, employee relations or industrial relations in South Africa.
• Hands-on experience running or advising on disciplinaries, incapacity processes, PIPs and dismissals, with a solid grasp of CCMA processes.
• Comfortable advising senior, non-SA stakeholders in plain, confident English.
• Genuinely open to learning other countries' employment rules, not only South Africa's.

ADVANTAGEOUS

• Experience at an EOR, PEO, RPO or HR outsourcing business.
• Supporting UK or European employers remotely, or multi-country HR exposure.
• Exposure to SA payroll and statutory submissions (PAYE, UIF, SDL).
• SABPP registration or a labour law certificate.
• Experience representing employers at the CCMA or bargaining councils.

Compensation & working pattern

• Base salary: R30,000 - R40,000
• Location: Remote from South Africa
• Core hours: Aligned to UK Business hours