Industrial Relations Specialist

Why this role matters

• As an Industrial Relations Specialist, you will play an important role in safeguarding project stability by proactively managing labour relations, community engagement, and stakeholder communication at project level.
• The role ensures alignment between project execution, contractor compliance, labour legislation, and community expectations. It identifies, assesses, and mitigates industrial relations and social risks that may impact project timelines, compliance, cost, safety, or reputation.
• As a trusted advisor to project leadership, the Industrial Relations Specialist drives structured stakeholder engagement, facilitates early conflict resolution, and promotes responsible local participation to support project success and Scatec's social licence to operate.
• This is a role for someone who wants to combine industrial relations and community impact with purpose, learn in a fast-moving international business, and build experience in one of the world’s most relevant industries.

What you’ll be doing

In this role, you will:

• Develop and implement stakeholder engagement and communication strategies aligned with project objectives and milestones.
• Prepare and deliver clear, timely communications to stakeholders, ensuring accurate information flow and mitigating misinformation.
• Build and maintain effective relationships with communities, municipalities, industry bodies, and other key project stakeholders.
• Monitor labour relations trends, identify emerging risks, and support the prevention and resolution of disputes in line with legislation and company policies.
• Ensure contractor compliance with labour legislation, local recruitment requirements, and project-related commitments.
• Promote local economic participation by engaging SMMEs, supporting local procurement initiatives, and maintaining stakeholder and supplier databases.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate industrial relations and community-related risks, including managing grievance mechanisms and implementing corrective actions.
• Provide specialist advisory support to project teams while managing relationships with Taxi Associations and other key stakeholders to resolve conflicts, mitigate disruptions, and maintain project continuity.

Your work will support real decisions, real assets, and real operational outcomes.

What you’ll gain

• Professional growth through ownership, exposure, and meaningful contribution from day one
• Hands-on experience in a role where the challenge is energising, fast-moving, meaningful, and built on learning through doing.
• Exposure to complex stakeholder environments, including communities, contractors, organised labour, local authorities, and industry bodies.
• The opportunity to develop specialised expertise in industrial relations, community engagement, and social risk management within large-scale renewable energy projects.

What you’ll bring

• Bachelor’s degree in Labour Relations, Industrial Psychology, HR, Law, Social Sciences, or a related field.
• 5–8 years’ experience in Industrial Relations, Labour Relations, Community Relations, or a similar role within infrastructure, construction, energy, mining, or other project-based environments.
• Proven experience managing labour disputes, grievance processes, mediation, and industrial relations risks in complex operational environments.
• Experience ensuring contractor and subcontractor compliance with labour legislation, recruitment protocols, and project commitments.
• Demonstrated ability to engage effectively with community leadership structures, local stakeholders, organised labour, and other external stakeholders.
• Experience identifying, assessing, and mitigating industrial relations and community-related risks that may impact project delivery, with willingness and ability to travel across project sites as required.

Advantageous:

• Experience in renewable energy or large-scale infrastructure projects.
• Exposure to multi-contractor project environments.
• Experience working in remote or rural project locations