Senior Director, Employment Counsel

Kyowa Kirin is a fast growing global specialty pharmaceutical company that applies state-of-the-art biotechnologies to discover and deliver novel medicines in four areas of unmet need: oncology, nephrology, immunology and CNS/movement disorders. The North America organization includes three offices (in New Jersey and California) that focus on drug discovery, product development, and commercialization. Together, we work as a close-knit team to understand clinical needs and advance innovations that can have a profound impact on patient lives.

As a patient centric organization that strives to deliver innovative medicines to meet unmet needs, we feel that it is critical to follow the safety guidelines defined by CDC and OSHA. We believe the COVID-19 vaccine is the best way to manage COVID risk to you, your colleagues, your family and our society. With that in mind, we are taking the essential step to ensure the safety of our employees during this health crisis by requiring all US employees, temporary workers, agency employees and independent contractors to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, where allowed by state or local law and where vaccine supply is readily available. In accordance with applicable law, individuals may seek an accommodation for medical or disability-related conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs.

Summary of Job: 

Reporting to the Executive Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer and General Counsel North America (located in New Jersey office), the Senior Director, Employment Counsel, will be a key member of the Legal Department supporting KKNA’s rapid business growth in North America.  This individual will be responsible for ensuring that Kyowa Kirin’s growth is achieved in accordance with applicable employment laws and aligned with KKNA’s global corporate values: Commitment to Life; Innovation; Integrity; and Teamwork/WA.

Position is based in Princeton, New Jersey, Hybrid (2 days required in office weekly)

Essential Functions:

• Provides legal advice on a broad range of employment law, labor relations and benefits issues, as well as ensuring appropriate policy and operational compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws (operations in all fifty states, with majority of employees located in New Jersey and California).
• Independently handles or manages outside counsel, as appropriate, on employment related pre-litigation and litigation matters, including administrative agency proceedings. As appropriate may handle administrative charges in house, independent of outside counsel.
• Supports Human Resources on a wide array of employment law issues, including employee investigations, restructurings, and the implementation and delivery of training programs.
• Educates stakeholders on legal matters, policies and procedures related to employment and labor law.
• Provides legal support related to employee benefits and executive compensation, including the drafting, negotiation and implementation of employment and severance/separation agreements, equity and equity-based compensation arrangements, and all types of incentive and deferred compensation arrangements. 
• Drafts, advises on, and negotiates (as applicable) other employment-related documents, including contracts, offer letters, agreements, restrictive covenants, and company policies.
• Assists in mergers and acquisitions and post-acquisition work, including the evaluation of employment issues related to proposed business integration and drafting appropriate employment provisions in related agreements.
• Leads employment law-related projects, including internal audits and process reviews.
• Develops strategy with senior leadership on company-wide initiatives that impact employees.
• Stays abreast of laws, regulations and enforcement activities related to employment and labor law and has a general understanding of laws and regulations governing the activities of employees in the pharmaceutical industry.
• Performs other tasks as assigned, from time to time, by the General Counsel.

Job Requirements:

Education

• JD degree and member in good standing in New Jersey bar or (Limited License for In House Counsel in NJ) required and a minimum of 10+ years of broad experience in employment and labor law, with a focus on the pharmaceutical and/or medical device industry strongly preferred in either a corporate legal department or a nationally recognized law firm.
• Deep understanding of U.S. federal and state employment and labor laws.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication (oral and written), and presentation skills.
• Ability to interact effectively with diverse audiences.
• Ability to work independently and clearly make reasoned recommendations, while recognizing when to elevate certain matters to the attention of the General Counsel.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office.
• Strong leadership skills, high integrity, strong work ethic, self-motivated, respectful and conscientious.
• Ability to balance simultaneous tasks and triage work as appropriate.
• Ability to act decisively and responsively.
• Ability to work well as part of team – with both legal and non-legal partners

Physical Demands:

• Ability to sit, stand or walk for various lengths of time throughout the day.
• Approximately 5% overnight travel.
• Position is based in New Jersey, Hybrid (2 days required in office).

Working Conditions: 

• Requires up to 5% domestic & International Travel

KKNA and all of its employees have an obligation to act in accordance with the law and with integrity in all our operations and interactions

It is the policy of Kyowa Kirin North America, Inc. to provide equal employment opportunity to all qualified persons without regard to race, religion, creed, color, pregnancy, sex, age, national origin, disability, genetic trait or predisposition, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation or affection preference or citizenship status or any other category protected by law.

When you apply to a job on this site, the personal data contained in your application will be collected and stored by Kyowa Kirin, Inc. (“Controller”), which is located at 135 Route 202/206, Suite 6, Bedminster, NJ 07921 USA and can be contacted by emailing [email protected]. Controller’s data protection officer can be contacted at [email protected]. Your personal data will be processed for the purposes of managing Controller’s recruitment related activities, which include setting up and conducting interviews and tests for applicants, evaluating and assessing the results thereto, and as is otherwise needed in the recruitment and hiring processes. Such processing is legally permissible under Art. 6(1)(f) of General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (“GDPR”) as necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the Controller, which are the solicitation, evaluation, and selection of applicants for employment. 

Your personal data will be shared with Greenhouse Software, Inc., a cloud services provider located in the United States of America and engaged by Controller to help manage its recruitment and hiring process on Controller’s behalf. Accordingly, if you are located outside of the United States, your personal data will be transferred to the United States once you submit it through this site. The transfer will be made using appropriate additional safeguards under the standard contractual clauses approved by regulators for transfers of personal data outside the European Union.

Your personal data will be retained by Controller as long as Controller determines it is necessary to evaluate your application for employment.  Under the GDPR, if you are located in the European Union, you have the right to request access to your personal data, to request that your personal data be rectified or erased, and to request that processing of your personal data be restricted. You also have the right to data portability, and to lodge a complaint with an EU supervisory authority. If you have any questions about our use of your data, you may contact us by email at [email protected].

Kyowa Kirin does not accept agency resumes unless contacted directly by internal Kyowa Kirin Talent Acquisition. Please do not forward resumes to Kyowa Kirin employees or any other company location; Kyowa Kirin is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

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