HR Business Partner

Role: HR Business Partner Reports to: HR & Safety Services Manager Role Level: Experienced individual contributor; developmental entry may apply Supervisory Responsibilities: None Position Purpose The HR Business Partner provides hands-on human resources support to an assigned manufacturing location and serves as the local extension of corporate HR programs, policies, standards, and operating principles. The position partners closely with the Plant Manager, supervisors, employees, the HR & Safety Services Manager, corporate HR program owners, and the local Safety Coordinator to create a healthy, accountable work environment and a consistent employee experience. This is a business-partner role, not a substitute for day-to-day supervision. The Partner equips leaders with practical tools, candid coaching, clear expectations, and appropriate accountability so supervisors perform their responsibilities effectively rather than transferring routine management work to HR. Key Responsibilities Leadership Partnership Participate as a member of the plant supervisory team and regularly attend Plant Manager staff meetings to contribute the HR perspective, engage in workplace problem resolution, identify emerging employee and organizational needs, and support coordinated leadership decisions. Report relevant HR measures, trends, risks, and progress; serve as a communication link between the plant and corporate Human Resources; and support the timely rollout of Steel King programs, policies, events, communications, and organizational updates. Collaborate closely with the Plant Manager and other leaders as a trusted business partner, maintaining an open and reciprocal relationship that includes seeking and accepting coaching, providing candid guidance and constructive challenge, sharing observations and recommendations, and influencing effectively across all levels of the organization. Demonstrate the professional maturity to give and receive feedback, learn from operational leadership, respectfully challenge when HR, employee, safety, or business considerations require it, and align on actions that support employees and the business. Keep the direct manager and Plant Manager appropriately informed of material issues, status, risk, ownership, and next steps while protecting confidential, medical, and employee information. Partner with management while maintaining HR independence, professional judgment, consistency, employee dignity, and accountability to approved corporate standards. Employee, Union and Supervisor Relations Provide fair, responsive, and confidential support to employees and leaders. Conduct or support employee-relations and workplace investigations; establish facts, maintain documentation, recognize risk, and make recommendations within delegated authority. Support union relations, grievances, contract application, attendance, employee checkpoints, corrective action, performance concerns, and exits; track deadlines and avoid unauthorized commitments or precedent-setting interpretations. Coach supervisors on communication, documentation, attendance, performance, conduct, policy, and collective-bargaining agreement application. Build supervisor capability rather than assuming routine leadership responsibilities. Provide checklists, scripts, training, and decision guidance, then follow up for completion and accountability. Use employee checkpoints, retention discussions, exits, case themes, and feedback to identify practical improvements to the work environment and employee experience. Recruiting, Apprenticeship, Onboarding and Performance Partner with plant leadership and corporate HR to translate approved workforce needs into recruiting priorities and timely, job-related selection activity. Manage assigned recruiting activity and candidate experience; monitor days to fill, requisition aging, candidate flow, source effectiveness, offer acceptance, agency use, and early turnover. Reduce unnecessary agency dependence by building direct sourcing, referral, school, technical-college, community, and apprenticeship pipelines. Implement and maintain the apprenticeship program, including partner relationships, participant requirements, documentation, progress checkpoints, issue resolution, and reporting. Coordinate organized onboarding and required training; maintain supervisor onboarding checklists, role-specific plans, first-day readiness tools, and early-employment checkpoints. Support performance management aligned with quality-management principles: clear standards, documented evidence, corrective and preventive action, follow-up, and verification that improvement occurred. Apply continuous-improvement methods to simplify work, strengthen controls, improve handoffs, and make the employee and supervisor experience more reliable. Workers Compensation, Leave Coordination and Safety Support Manage the employee-relations and case-management aspects of workers compensation, including employee communication, medical restrictions, transitional work, return-to-work coordination, and potential overlap with FMLA, ADA, attendance, and other leave requirements. Coordinate with corporate leave, benefits, payroll, or other specialists as required; recognize decision boundaries and obtain appropriate review before commitments are made. Partner with the Safety Coordinator on work-related incidents and investigations, ensuring employee-related information, documentation, restrictions, communication, and follow-up are appropriately coordinated. Serve as trained backup to the Safety Coordinator for defined responsibilities such as timely injury and claim reporting, OSHA recordkeeping, incident investigations, and corrective-action tracking to ensure continuity of coverage. Support, rather than duplicate, the Safety Coordinators day-to-day safety responsibilities. Escalate severe incidents, repeat hazards, disputed claims, prolonged lost time, retaliation concerns, regulatory contacts, or unresolved actions. Contribute to sustainable workers compensation and experience-modification-rate improvement through timely reporting, active case coordination, effective return-to-work practices, trend review, and follow-through. Corporate Partnership, UKG and Reporting Serve as the location-level extension of approved corporate HR programs, policies, systems, and standards; provide local implementation, feedback, and follow-through. Use UKG and other approved systems only within assigned role-based permissions. Access is limited to the employee populations, information, reports, and transactions required for assigned responsibilities. Maintain accurate and timely plant-to-corporate handoffs; communicate missing information, process failures, barriers, or control concerns early. Provide a concise weekly plan-performance update to the direct manager, including material employee or union matters, recruiting results, onboarding, apprenticeship progress, workers compensation and leave coordination, safety-support actions, barriers, risk, owners, and next steps. Required Competencies Expected proficiency is independent execution of assigned work, sound judgment on routine matters, appropriate collaboration with plant leadership, and timely escalation of complex or high-risk issues. Competency Expected behavior Business partnership Builds a productive, reciprocal relationship with the Plant Manager and leaders; gives and receives feedback, provides candid guidance, and influences decisions while maintaining HR independence. Employee and labor relations Establishes facts, documents matters, applies policy and labor agreements consistently, protects confidentiality, and recognizes when specialized guidance is needed. Supervisor development Provides tools, coaching, expectations, and follow-up that strengthen supervisor capability without assuming routine management responsibilities. Recruiting and workforce programs Coordinates recruiting, apprenticeship, onboarding, and training activity; improves candidate and employee experience and reduces unnecessary agency dependence. Workers compensation and leave coordination Coordinates employee communication, restrictions, transitional work, return to work, and intersections with FMLA, ADA, attendance, and other leaves. Safety partnership and backup Coordinates effectively with the Safety Coordinator and provides trained backup for defined reporting, recordkeeping, investigation, and corrective-action responsibilities. HRIS and reporting Uses UKG within assigned role-based permissions, maintains accurate records, and provides concise reporting that identifies performance, risk, ownership, and needed decisions. Accountability and follow-through Tracks commitments to completion, raises barriers early, owns corrections, and confirms that issues and assigned actions are resolved. Judgment, confidentiality and improvement Protects sensitive information, works within decision boundaries, escalates appropriately, applies feedback, and recommends practical service and process improvements. Education and Experience Bachelors degree in Human Resources, Business, Safety, or a related field preferred; an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience is acceptable. Progressively responsible experience in human resources, employee relations, labor relations, workers compensation, recruiting, safety support, or related work, with demonstrated capability appropriate to the responsibilities assigned. Demonstrated ability to handle confidential information, conduct or support investigations, coach leaders, manage competing priorities, and follow responsibilities through completion. Working knowledge of employment practices, workers compensation, FMLA, ADA, OSHA recordkeeping, and documentation requirements, including the ability to identify when specialist or legal review is required. Experience using an HRIS and producing recurring operational measures; UKG experience is preferred but not required. Manufacturing, union, apprenticeship, return-to-work, and direct-sourcing experience is preferred. This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the position. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with, or without notice. Steel King Industries, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. This means that we do not discriminate based on race, creed, color, national origin, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, or other classification protected under applicable law. Reasonable accommodation will be considered for qualified applicants. Our employees health and well-being are important to us. In addition, the Company has a longstanding commitment to provide a safe and productive work environment. Alcohol and drug abuse pose a threat to the health and safety of employees and to the security of our equipment and facilities. For these reasons, the Company is committed to the elimination of drug and/or alcohol use and abuse in the workplace.