Employment Counsel

Job Title: Employment Counsel

Department: Legal & Compliance

About the Role: The Employment Counsel will serve as a primary legal advisor on employment, litigation and regulatory matters, partnering closely with the People Team, Senior Leadership, Legal, and Government Affairs to provide strategic, business-focused counsel. This role will lead the ongoing operations, effectiveness and continuous improvement of employment policies that align with organizational objectives while mitigating legal risk, advise on new and emerging state and federal laws and regulations impacting operations, and serve as a subject-matter expert on employment and related compliance issues. The Employment Counsel will also evaluate regulatory opportunities and challenges, support engagement with state and federal leaders on health and social care initiatives, and oversee all affirmative and defensive litigation matters to protect and advance the company’s interests.

What You'll Do:

• Advise the HR and business teams on a wide range of employment related issues, including but not limited to wage and hour compliance, payroll, benefits, hiring, performance management, internal investigations, leaves of absence, discipline, terminations, employee classification, and employee privacy and state specific legal requirements across the country

• Own employment policy development and continuous improvement: Draft, implement, and maintain company-wide employment policies, playbooks, and standard operating procedures, including the use of AI tools in employment that align with organizational goals

• Ensure employment policies are legally defensible, pragmatic for operations, version-controlled, and updated proactively in response to legal or business changes.

• Proactively plan, advise on and implement programs and improvements to support and protect the business, including across other key regulatory areas as needed

• Conduct or supervise thorough, legally sound investigations into allegations (e.g., harassment, discrimination, retaliation); document findings, recommend and implement remedial actions, ensure confidentiality and procedural fairness, and integrate lessons learned into policy or training updates

• Provide legal guidance on hiring, terminations, layoffs, and workforce reorganizations —including employee transfers, severance strategies, WARN/plant closing compliance, independent contractor classification, and immigration considerations—to mitigate risk and support business objectives

• Oversee outside counsel relationship with employment and immigration counsel

• Manage other litigation matters, including RFP bid protests, employee matters, and other affirmative and defensive litigation matters

• Continuously track legislation, agency guidance, and case law across jurisdictions relevant to UniteUs; synthesize impacts into clear legal summaries, gap analyses, and prioritized action plans for stakeholders, including triggers for policy or process changes.

You’re a great fit for this role if:

• 4+ years of experience in a large law firm and/or in-house

• 4+ years of employment law experience

• Comprehensive knowledge of federal and state employment laws and regulations (including ADA, ADEA, FMLA, CFRA, FLSA, etc.)

• Experience managing employment litigation

• Experience advising on employment laws

Education Requirement:

• An undergraduate and law degree

Licenses and Certifications

• Admission to a recognized bar

Our Mission:

Unite Us’ mission is to unlock the potential of every community. Our co-founders started Unite Us in 2013 to serve the people they served with. They witnessed firsthand the barriers and inefficiencies in trying to navigate health and social services, and set out to improve that experience for veterans and their families. Unite Us quickly expanded to serving all people who need connections to care across our country. Through Unite Us’ national network and software, community-based organizations, government agencies, and healthcare organizations are all connected to better collaborate to meet the needs of the individuals in their communities. We drive the collaboration to predict, deliver, and pay for services that impact whole-person health. If you want to do well and do good, join Unite Us.

Environmental Job Requirements and Working Conditions:

• This position is remote, U.S. based.

• This position may require 5% travel

• The target pay range for this role is: $135,000-$150,000. This salary range represents our target hiring range for this role. The proposed salary will be dependent on the candidate's skills, experience, and competencies, as well as location.

• All team members will be required to pass a background check which includes criminal, employment, and education verification

Benefits provided by Unite Us:

Medical, Dental, and Vision

We offer insurance to team members and eligible partners and dependents, including unlimited virtual mental health and acute medical visits.

Wellness

Mental health benefits, such as the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and wellness platform subscription, are available to all team members.

Flexible Time Off

Take what you need, including volunteer days and mental health days. We also offer 14 paid, company-wide holidays.

Paid Parental Leave

Adoptive parents are included.

Employee Resource Groups

Join our ERGs to connect and engage with colleagues, like Military Veterans

Spending Accounts

We offer tax-advantaged health savings accounts (HSAs), flexible spending accounts (FSAs), and commuter benefits.

401(k) + Employer Match

Enjoy matching, immediate vesting and financial wellness resources

Additional Benefits

Life and AD&D - a company paid benefit, with the option to purchase additional coverage for yourself and your dependents

Disability Coverage

Accident Insurance

Pet Insurance

As part of this work at home job, we will provide you with all the necessary equipment to perform your duties, including a computer, mouse, keyboard as well as other items on our approved list of WFH supplies.

Unite Us is committed to building a diverse team and fostering an inclusive culture, and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We embrace and encourage our employees' differences in race, religion, color, national origin, gender, family status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, veteran status, disability, pregnancy, medical conditions, and other characteristics. If you require assistance in applying for open positions due to a disability please email us at [email protected] to request an accommodation.

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