Director Labour Relations

Expedia, Inc.; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - GBP 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading global travel technology company is seeking a Director of Labour Relations to shape and drive its European labour and industrial relations strategy. This role requires a visionary leader with over 10 years of experience in collective labour relations, capable of fostering collaborative relationships with employee representatives across EMEA. The successful candidate will architect a proactive framework aligning employee sentiment with business objectives, ensuring compliance and driving a culture of trust and transparency. A competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package are included.

Benefits

Travel perks

Generous time-off

Career development resources

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in labour relations or trade union strategy roles.
• Demonstrable experience managing relationships with Works Councils.
• Exceptional communication and influencing skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement a labour relations strategy for EMEA.
• Serve as a primary advisor to senior leadership on ERBs.
• Lead or provide oversight for high-stakes negotiations.

Skills

Collective Labour Relations

Negotiation

Employee Relations

Communication

Strategic Planning

Cultural Awareness

Risk Management

Job description

Expedia Group brands power global travel for everyone, everywhere. We design cutting‑edge tech to make travel smoother and more memorable, and we create groundbreaking solutions for our partners. Our diverse, vibrant, and welcoming community is essential in driving our success.

Why Join Us?

To shape the future of travel, people must come first. Guided by our Values and Leadership Agreements, we foster an open culture where everyone belongs, differences are celebrated and know that when one of us wins, we all win.

We provide a full benefits package, including exciting travel perks, generous time‑off, parental leave, a flexible work model (with some pretty cool offices), and career development resources, all to fuel our employees' passion for travel and ensure a rewarding career journey. We’re building a more open world. Join us.

Introduction to the team

Are you passionate about shaping positive labour relations and driving strategic change? At Expedia Group, we see constructive social dialogue not as an obligation, but as a strategic advantage. We are seeking a visionary leader to architect and drive our European labour and industrial relations strategy focusing on productive, constructive, compliant and collaborative engagement with Employee Representative Bodies (Trade Unions, Works Councils and Health & Safety committees). This is not a traditional, reactive labour relations role; this is a unique opportunity to build a proactive, forward‑thinking framework that aligns employee sentiment with our core business objectives, fostering a culture of trust, transparency, and partnership. In this influential role, you’ll develop and execute our labour relations strategy, ensuring productive, compliant, and trusted interactions with ERBs across EMEA.

As the Director, Labour Relations you will be the central architect of our company's long‑term vision and approach to all forms of employee representation in EMEA. Beyond traditional negotiation, you will build a cohesive, enterprise‑wide strategy that anticipates change, mitigates risk, and turns social partnership into a competitive enabler. You will act as a senior advisor to Business and People & Places leadership, ensuring our most critical business initiatives are supported by world‑class employee consultation and engagement.

In this role, you will:

• Architect an EMEA Framework: Design and implement a cohesive, long‑term labour relations and employee representation strategy for engagement that aligns with our business goals, environmental sustainability commitments, and company values.
• Drive Continuous Improvement: Establish mechanisms to regularly review and enhance labour relations practices, ensuring agility and alignment with evolving business and regulatory landscapes.
• Integrate with Business Strategy, acting as an enabler: Ensure that ERB strategy is a core component of major corporate initiatives, including restructuring, change management, digital initiatives, Data‑Driven Insights: Utilize data and analytics to identify trends, measure the effectiveness of our engagement models, and provide insights to leadership. Provide compliant localized solutions to business needs.
• Executive Counsel: Serve as the primary advisor to the Sr leadership on all strategic matters related to ERBs, providing expert guidance and risk assessment.
• Coach & Empower: Coach senior leaders on effective communication, consultation, and negotiation techniques to build trust and constructive relationships with employee representatives.
• Cross‑Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with Legal, Communications, Public Affairs, and Transformation teams to ensure a unified and consistent approach.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Communication: Develop clear communication strategies to keep internal stakeholders informed and engaged on ERB‑related initiatives, fostering transparency and trust.
• Lead Major Negotiations: Personally lead or provide strategic oversight for high‑stakes, multi‑country consultations and negotiations (e.g., CBA negotiations, major restructuring plans).
• Build Relationships: Cultivate and maintain strong, trust‑based relationships with key senior employee representatives and union officials.
• Harmonise Processes: Drive consistency and excellence in how we manage engagement and governance across all our ERBs.
• Risk Mitigation: Develop strategies to de‑risk complex business changes, prevent disputes and litigation, and ensure full compliance with all legal and collective agreement obligations, ensuring Social peace.

Experience and Qualifications:

• Extensive Experience: 10+ years of progressive experience in Collective Labour Relations, Industrial Relations (IR), or a dedicated Works Council/Trade Union strategy role within a large, complex, multinational technology organisation.
• Deep European Expertise: Demonstrable, in‑depth experience managing relationships and complex negotiations with Works Councils and Trade Unions in key jurisdictions (e.g., Germany, France, Spain, Netherlands).
• Global Mindset: Ability to navigate cultural nuances and regulatory differences across multiple jurisdictions while maintaining consistency in approach.
• Strategic Acumen: A proven track record of moving beyond reactive case management to develop and implement proactive, long‑term labour relations strategies.
• Executive Influence: Exceptional communication, influencing, and negotiation skills, with the credibility to advise and challenge senior executives.
• Change & Transformation Leadership: Experience in labor due diligence in mergers, integrations, and acquisitions. Skilled in designing strategies for large‑scale multi‑country restructuring and substantial changes to working conditions across different jurisdictions in EMEA, as well as executing and coordinating the necessary collective bargaining negotiations.
• Resilience & Composure: The ability to remain calm, strategic, and influential under high pressure and in contentious situations.
• Fluency in a major European language in addition to English (e.g., German, French).

Accommodation requests

If you need assistance with any part of the application or recruiting process due to a disability, or other physical or mental health conditions, please reach out to our Recruiting Accommodations Team through the Accommodation Request.

We are proud to be named as a Best Place to Work on Glassdoor in 2024 and be recognized for award‑winning culture by organizations like Forbes, TIME, Disability:IN, and others.

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