Senior Counsel, Employment Lawyer

Job Description

Senior Counsel, Employment Lawyer – Germany & EMEA (Fixed Term Contract) (W/M/D)

As a Senior Counsel, Employment Lawyer at Warner Bros Discovery, you'll partner with our dynamic People & Culture (HR) team to navigate complex employment legal issues across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and other European jurisdictions as needed. Reporting directly to the Group Vice President of Employment Law based in the UK, you'll play a crucial role in minimizing financial and reputational risks while providing expert legal advice.

The role will be based in and have a particular focus on Germany but represents a great opportunity for a German qualified employment lawyer to work on cross border issues in the region.

Your Role Accountabilities…
• Strategic Legal Partner: Manage and be the key contact for day-to-day employment legal issues across all Warner Bros Discovery's businesses in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Support employment advice for various brands including Discovery+, Max, Discovery TV channels, Eurosport, HGTV, Warner TV, Tele 5, and Warner Bros. International Television Production (WBITVP).
• Cross-Border Expertise: Coordinate employment legal matters across European territories, working with local external legal counsel as needed. Advise on the impact of the roll out of global policies, processes, and initiatives within the region.
• Innovative Solutions: Provide ongoing advice to People & Culture on initiatives with legal implications, including reorganizations, acquisitions, sales, and outsourcing.
• Comprehensive Advisory: Advise People & Culture and business leaders on a full range of people-related issues, including Works Council matters, which are key in Germany.
• Documentation Mastery: Draft and negotiate employment contracts, bonus arrangements, and mutual agreements.
• Litigation Management: Oversee litigation in the region, working with outside counsel where relevant.
• Collaborative Approach: Work closely with the People Relations team on investigations and disciplinary matters, and with local commercial/corporate in-house lawyers on relevant projects.
• Training & Development: Provide training to upskill the P&C team on current employment legislation and case law, and to managers where relevant.

Qualifications & Experience…
• German qualified employment lawyer.
• Experience of employment law in other jurisdictions is advantageous but not essential.
• In-house experience, particularly in the media sector, is beneficial.
• Fluent in German and English; proficiency in other European languages is beneficial.
• Technically proficient with excellent academic credentials.
• Strong communication skills, capable of presenting complex legal issues, in a clear and engaging manner.
• Ability to excel in a fast-paced environment with minimal supervision.
• Effective time management skills to handle competing interests.

Severely disabled employees are welcome in our company and will be given special consideration if they are equally qualified. Flexible Working hours are offered to assist.

Championing Inclusion at WBD
Warner Bros. Discovery embraces the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit, regardless of sex, gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, disability or any other category protected by law. Severely disabled employees are welcome in our company and will be given special consideration if they are equally qualified. Flexible working hours are offered to assist.

If you're a qualified candidate with a disability and you require adjustments or accommodations during the job application and/or recruitment process, please visit our accessibility page for instructions to submit your request.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-pk8x1x-18-220-124-7-42 in your application.