Manager, Labour Relations

KIRAH Executive Search & Leadership Advisory has been retained by the Vancouver School Board to lead the search for its next Manager, Labour Relations. This is a key leadership appointment within VSB’s Employee Services Division and an opportunity for an accomplished labour relations professional to take meaningful ownership of day-to-day labour relations operations within one of Canada’s largest and most diverse public school systems.

Reporting to the Director, Labour Relations, the Manager will provide operational labour relations leadership, trusted advice, and practical guidance across a complex and highly unionized public education environment. The successful candidate will bring strong technical labour relations capability together with sound judgement, confidence, responsiveness, and a genuine ability to coach and develop others.

The Vancouver School Board serves more than 50,000 students across approximately 110 schools and programs and is supported by more than 7,700 employees. The District serves a highly diverse urban community and is committed to equity, inclusion, accountability, continuous improvement, and creating learning environments where every student can succeed and experience a strong sense of belonging.

The Manager, Labour Relations will serve as the day-to-day operational leader within VSB’s Labour Relations function. The Manager will support:

• collective bargaining
• collective agreement administration and interpretation
• grievances
• performance management
• workplace investigations

The role also provides leadership to Labour Relations Advisors and Coordinators while working closely with District leaders, unions, employees, and other stakeholders. This is a hands-on leadership position. The successful candidate must be capable of independently managing significant labour relations matters, exercising practical judgement, and understanding when an issue should be escalated.

The Manager will:

• Provide day-to-day operational leadership across the Labour Relations function.
• Independently manage significant labour relations files.
• Provide practical and defensible advice to District leaders.
• Support the Director, Labour Relations on complex and higher-risk matters.
• Help ensure important files progress in a timely and organized manner.
• Maintain strong documentation and professional standards.
• Exercise sound judgement regarding when matters should be escalated.

The successful candidate will:

• Support administration and interpretation of VSB’s collective agreements.
• Advise leaders regarding employee and labour relations obligations.
• Support collective bargaining activities.
• Assist with grievances, mediation, arbitration, and related processes.
• Promote consistency in the application of collective agreement provisions.
• Identify recurring issues and opportunities to strengthen labour relations practices.

The Manager will provide leadership and advice concerning:

• workplace investigations
• performance management
• complex employee relations matters
• risk and documentation
• appropriate escalation of significant issues

A major part of this mandate is strengthening capability within the Labour Relations team. The Manager will:

• Coach and mentor Labour Relations Advisors and Coordinators.
• Help team members build confidence and judgement.
• Support exposure to progressively more complex files.
• Encourage accountability without becoming the bottleneck for every decision.
• Build a collaborative and professionally rigorous team environment.

VSB is seeking a Manager who will help ensure labour relations advice is:

• timely
• practical
• credible
• consistent
• responsive
• clearly communicated

The Manager will:

• Take ownership of assigned matters.
• Follow through reliably.
• Ensure advice is clear and actionable.
• Support timely progression of files.
• Strengthen consistency across the function.
• Help build a culture of accountability and professional excellence.

In the First 90 Days, the successful candidate will:

• Build a strong working relationship with the Director, Labour Relations.
• Develop productive relationships with Labour Relations Advisors and Coordinators.
• Establish credibility with District leaders and union stakeholders.
• Develop familiarity with VSB’s collective agreements and major labour relations issues.
• Understand current workloads, recurring challenges, and operational priorities.
• Begin independently managing significant files.
• Demonstrate sound judgement regarding escalation, documentation, and risk.

Within the First Year, the Manager will:

• Be recognized as a trusted and dependable labour relations leader.
• Take meaningful ownership of day-to-day Labour Relations operations.
• Strengthen the consistency and responsiveness of advice.
• Help develop the capability and confidence of team members.
• Improve operational discipline and follow-through.
• Build strong working relationships with District leaders and union partners.
• Support the Director in strengthening the broader Labour Relations function.
• Contribute to succession readiness and long-term team capability.

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• sound practical judgement
• confidence managing significant files independently
• strong knowledge of collective agreements
• experience with grievances, discipline, investigations, and performance management
• credibility with leaders, unions, and employees
• a coaching and developmental leadership style
• strong organizational discipline
• reliable follow-through
• clear and practical communication
• confidence without ego
• resilience
• professionalism
• accountability
• a growth mindset

The ideal candidate will know how to exercise authority while remaining approachable and grounded. They will support others in developing capability rather than holding every complex matter at the management level.

The successful candidate is expected to bring:

• Progressive labour relations or employee relations experience within a complex unionized environment.
• Strong experience interpreting and administering collective agreements.
• Experience with grievances, employee discipline, performance management, workplace investigations, and employment legislation.
• Practical experience providing labour relations advice to leaders and internal clients.
• Demonstrated sound judgement in sensitive employee and labour relations matters.
• Strong relationship-building capability with unions and organizational stakeholders.
• Experience coaching, mentoring, or supporting the development of other labour relations professionals.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong organizational and documentation capability.
• Experience within K-12 education, broader public sector, healthcare, municipal government, post-secondary education, or another complex multi-union environment will be highly relevant.

The Manager, Labour Relations is based at the VSB Education Centre, 1580 West Broadway, Vancouver, British Columbia. Candidates should expect this to be an in-person role requiring regular accessibility and connection with the Labour Relations team, District leaders, and organizational stakeholders.

The anticipated salary range for the Manager, Labour Relations is: $123,240 to $144,988 annually. The position also includes benefits. Final compensation will reflect the successful candidate’s experience, qualifications, and overall alignment with the mandate.

For an accomplished labour relations professional, this is an opportunity to:

• Take on meaningful operational leadership within VSB’s Labour Relations function.
• Work closely with the Director, Labour Relations and senior Employee Services leadership.
• Manage complex labour relations matters with genuine autonomy.
• Support collective bargaining and administration of multiple collective agreements.
• Coach and develop Labour Relations Advisors and Coordinators.
• Strengthen succession capability within the team.
• Improve consistency, responsiveness, and operational discipline across the function.
• Build trusted relationships with District leaders and union partners.
• Contribute to the evolution of labour relations practices across VSB.

KIRAH believes this opportunity will be especially attractive to a strong labour relations practitioner who wants more ownership, greater leadership responsibility, and the opportunity to develop others without moving away from substantive labour relations work. VSB is seeking someone who can independently handle complex matters while knowing when to seek broader executive involvement. Technical capability will be important, but long-term success will also depend on reliability, judgement, responsiveness, communication, coaching capability, and professional maturity.

The strongest candidate will bring enough confidence to lead while retaining the humility and collaborative approach required to build trust across the organization.

The Vancouver School Board and KIRAH Executive Search & Leadership Advisory are committed to an inclusive search process. Qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds and experiences are encouraged to apply. Accommodations are available throughout the recruitment and selection process upon request.