Sr HR Compliance Specialist

JOB SUMMARY:

Reporting to the Director, Employee Relations and Compliance, this role oversees and functions as the organization’s subject matter expert to ensure NORC’s compliance and adherence to contract, federal, and state requirements. In addition, this role will have primary responsibility for auditing HR processes, procedures, and protocols across the department, with a focus on Talent Acquisition (TA) and onboarding processes, such as background checks and I-9 compliance.

This role necessitates a highly motivated and organized individual with experience in federal, state, and contract regulatory compliance, HR compliance and analytics. The ideal candidate should be process-driven, exhibit critical thinking abilities and have the capacity to effectively partner and communicate with organization stakeholders and external consultants.

DEPARTMENT: NORC People

The NORC People department supports NORC's mission and values by collaborating with research, operations, and administrative departments to recruit, develop, and retain top staff. Because NORC is a government contractor, the NORC People team plays a large role ensuring that all staff information and systems remain secure and that our organization is fully compliant with our policies. NORC People is responsible for talent acquisition, hiring, benefits administration, employee relations matters, and performance evaluation programs to ensure our organization is maintaining compliance while keeping employees’ best interests in mind.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Review and adjudicate background check results in accordance with the federal Credit Report Act and applicable state and local laws
• Partner with external firm(s) to prepare annual regulatory reporting and filing requirements. This involves gathering and compiling necessary data on recruitment, hiring, terminations, promotions, salary, applicant flows, and transfers
• Plan, complete, and file federal, state, or local program reporting as required by government agencies
• Coordinate with Talent Acquisition (TA) Partners to develop, maintain and evaluate recruiting strategies and responsibilities to ensure compliance with the government requirements
• Ensure recruitment and selection processes are compliant regulatory requirements.
• Review and approve job application interview questions
• Review contract and regulatory obligations regularly and adjust/communicate action items, as needed
• Oversee, audit, and review applicant tracking data to ensure compliance. Create a process for monitoring missing or incomplete data fields, reviewing and cleaning data
• Oversee and audit I-9s for compliance
• Monitor implementation of regulatory programs; collaborate with Director to communicate plans to organization and hiring managers
• Work with Training & Development to develop, deliver and monitor training to TA team and hiring managers
• Address internal inquiries regarding laws and regulations as appropriate based on the specialist’s expertise; refer sensitive issues and concerns to manager or appropriate legal staff
• Perform other related duties as assigned

REQUIRED SKILLS:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent related work experience required.
• 3 years of specialized and related work, including preparing, implementing, or administering government regulatory plans
• 5 years of Human Resources related experience
• SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP preferred
• Expertise in federal/state regulations, and I-9 compliance requirements
• Experience with applicant tracking systems and applicant data management
• Superior verbal and written communication skills
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite or related software
• Ability to think analytically and solve problems
• Ability to prepare and analyze data, experience with government reporting
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail
• Ability to partner with leaders and stakeholders and serve as an advisor to the organization
• Preferred Qualifications
  • Direct experience working with compliance reviews
  • Experience creating queries/reports via Page Up or similar applicant tracking systems
  • Consulting experience

SALARY AND BENEFITS:

The pay range for this position is $81,000 – $122,000.

This position is classified as regular. Regular staff are eligible for NORC’s comprehensive benefits program. Benefits include, but are not limited to:

• Generously subsidized health insurance, effective on the first day of employment 

• Dental and vision insurance

• A defined contribution retirement program, along with a separate voluntary 403(b) retirement program

• Group life insurance, long-term and short-term disability insurance 

• Benefits that promote work/life balance, including generous paid time off, holidays; paid parental leave, bereavement leave, tuition assistance, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). 

NORC’s Approach to Equity and Transparency

Pay and benefits transparency helps to reduce wage gaps. As part of our commitment to pay equity and salary transparency, NORC includes a salary range for each job opening along with information about eligible benefit offerings. At NORC, we take a comprehensive approach to setting salary ranges and reviewing raises and promotions, which is overseen by a formal Salary Review Committee (SRC). 

WHAT WE DO:

NORC at the University of Chicago is an objective, non-partisan research institution that delivers reliable data and rigorous analysis to guide critical programmatic, business, and policy decisions. Since 1941, our teams have conducted groundbreaking studies, created and applied innovative methods and tools, and advanced principles of scientific integrity and collaboration. Today, government, corporate, and nonprofit clients around the world partner with us to transform increasingly complex information into useful knowledge.

WHO WE ARE:

For over 80 years, NORC has evolved in many ways, moving the needle with research methods, technical applications and groundbreaking research findings. But our tradition of excellence, passion for innovation, and commitment to collegiality have remained constant components of who we are as a brand, and who each of us is as a member of the NORC team. With world-class benefits, a business casual environment, and an emphasis on continuous learning, NORC is a place where people join for the stellar research and analysis work for which we’re known, and stay for the relationships they form with their colleagues who take pride in the impact their work is making on a global scale.

EEO STATEMENT: 

NORC is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer that values and actively seeks diversity in the workforce. NORC evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other legally protected characteristics.