TITLE: Plant HR Manager

REPORTS TO: Plant Director

LOCATION: Walton, NY

Lactalis Heritage Dairy is currently seeking candidates to join our team in Walton, NY.

Lactalis Group, the world leader in dairy, is a family-owned business with more than 85,000 pragmatic and ambitious professionals worldwide, committed to providing healthy and delicious dairy products that bring people together every day. At Lactalis, our core values of AMBITION, ENGAGEMENT, and SIMPLICITY are at the heart of everything we do.

If you’re looking for a unique experience with a company that offers strong brands, professional expertise, and a dynamic work environment that champions entrepreneurial spirit, hands-on responsibility, and real opportunity for career development, we want to hear from you!

Lactalis Heritage Dairy: inviting you to share with us your STORY, your PASSION, and your EXPERTISE.

From your PASSION to ours

The Plant HR Manager partners with the local plant management team and employees to drive business strategy and achieve breakthrough results. S/he serves as a consultant to management on HR related issues and proactively assesses and anticipates people related needs, with a strong emphasis on Safety, Quality, Resource Deployment and Continuous Improvement. The HR Manager formulates partnerships across the HR function to deliver value added service to management and employees that reflect LHD’s business objectives.

From your EXPERTISE to ours

Key responsibilities for this position include:

• Understands, follows, and enforces all safety, health, quality GMP and Company policies, procedures, and recognized practices.
• Oversees and participates in the recruitment, selection, and retention of all plant employees. Partners with Plant Leadership to maintain staffing levels according to business needs and the annual operating budget.
• Oversees the plant orientation/onboarding program for newly hired employees in partnership with the plant management team.
• Oversees site payroll administration and LOA process. Partners with USA Shared Services to ensure accurate payroll processing.
• Partners closely with the plant management team to understand business issues and opportunities and assist them in developing HR initiatives as a strategic and tactical response to those needs.
• Partners with management team to improve organizational effectiveness by optimizing resource utilization, employee morale and engagement.
• Partners with management to implement tools and processes designed to improve the organization’s overall effectiveness, change management initiatives, performance management processes and succession planning.
• Partners with LHD Corporate HR to enhance employee and management performance by identifying training and development needs, offering, and evaluating appropriate training programs, and ensuring effective utilization of performance management feedback systems and processes.
• Manages and enhances a productive work environment by resolving conflicts between management and associates, coaching management on effective management and coaching techniques and maintaining open communication with employees and managers.
• Advise and counsel managers on a variety of topics to optimize employee engagement, team development and organizational effectiveness. Provide counsel and training to managers and supervisors regarding positive employee relations and engagement efforts.
• Conducts investigations into employee complaints. Provides direction to plant management team by providing coaching and interpretation to complex employee relations issues to develop problem resolution solutions and improved teammate performance. Coaches and guides HR Generalist on less complex employee relations issues.
• Supports activities related to negotiating, maintaining, and ensuring adherence to the collective bargaining agreement; participates in union negotiations, grievance hearings, arbitrations, and serves as a point-of-contact for union representatives.
• Ensures legal compliance by monitoring and implementing applicable human resource federal and state requirements, conducting effective, thorough and objective investigations, representing organization at hearings, and interpreting Company policy for managers and employees.
• Responsible for managing site HR team members, including training and developing; planning, assigning and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

From your STORY to ours

Qualified applicants will contribute the following:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Administration, Business, or the equivalent combination of education and experience is required.
• 7+ years HR generalist experience required.
• 3+ years HR experience in a manufacturing environment is required, food industry preferred.
• 3+ years experience leading direct reporting team members is required.
• Experience working with labor unions is required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

• Strong understanding of HR practices in recruitment, organization development, policy administration, training, and employee relations.
• Hands-on, self-starter, capable of juggling multiple priorities in a fast-paced work environment.
• Strong business acumen.
• Demonstrated capability to interface and maintain effective relationships with all functions and levels of the organization; demonstrated listening skills.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment and make decisions in a manner consistent with company values.
• Knowledge of Federal and State employment laws, investigation skills, HR technical knowledge in EEO, FMLA, ADA, unemployment, and worker’s compensation.
• High level of proficiency in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and HRIS systems (Paylocity and UKG/Kronos preferred).
• Excellent communication skills (both written and verbal) and interpersonal skills.
• Strong influence and facilitation skills
• Experience managing organizational change.
• Proven ability to thrive in a collaborative team environment.
• Flexibility to support 24/7 operation.

Lactalis Heritage Dairy is an equal employment opportunity employer. We will not discriminate against applicants with regard to any legally-recognized basis including, but not limited to: veteran status, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, sexual orientation, and physical or mental disabilities.