Booking.com is the world's #1 accommodation site and the 3rd largest global e-commerce player. Our mission is to help travellers discover the world and, in order to do this, we employ individuals, of many nationalities, to develop our business in more than 200 countries worldwide. As we continue to scale at incredible speed and embark on our next chapter - experiences, loyalty, messaging, homes & apartments - we are actively recruiting the next generation of global entrepreneurs.
Given this, Booking.com is looking for a Senior Legal Counsel - Employment Law to join our Legal & Public Affairs (LPA) team in Amsterdam HQ. Within LPA, you will form part of the global employment law team and be the go-to person for the HR department to offer insight into, and advice about, legal matters relating to global employment law (with a significant element of Dutch employment law) as well as global projects that require (global) employment law assistance. So, day-to-day, you will combine both your academic and hands-on knowledge of law with your interpersonal skills. Additionally, you will demonstrate your ability to work independently and flexibly in Booking.com's fast-changing environment.
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Overall, this opportunity provides the successful candidate a platform to make a positive contribution to Booking.com's employees, and therefore, the company as a whole.
Key responsibilities:
- Provide advice on the full range of (global) employment law and HR practice areas.
- Contribute to global projects based on general knowledge of labour laws.
- Contribute legal expertise to a wide range of HR activities such as employment conditions, organisational changes, disciplinary actions, employment contracts, investigations, managing sick employees, dismissals and settlement agreements, engagement with trade unions and works councils and DEI initiatives.
- Align business strategy and corporate activities (including transactions) with local employment law requirements.
- Proactively keep up with new legislation, case law and market development to anticipate any upcoming legal change and ensure Booking.com is compliant.
- Proactively inform and train the HR department on new developments in employment law.
- Provide pragmatic and effective legal support to manage employment law and HR-related risks.
- Co-develop and review employment policies and procedures.
- Draft and update legal templates and HR-related documents.
- Advise on and assist with employee representation/works council/trade union matters.
- Willingness to deep-dive into other fields of expertise, and make it your own.
- An academic degree in Law is mandatory, a Dutch (employment) Law degree is a plus
- 5+ years of relevant experience in a top tier Law firm and/or major corporation
- Experience in providing counsel and advice across the full spectrum of employment law, preferably in one or all of the following jurisdictions: Netherlands, France, Spain and/or Italy.
- Experience with works council processes
- Ability to explain complex legal topics in a clear and concise manner
- Capable of handling complex and high risk cases
- Ability to work autonomously, proactively and on time sensitive matters
- Capable of adapting and responding to both changing and sensitive situations
- Strong work ethic; self-directed and resourceful
- Solution oriented and result driven
- Proactive, flexible and capable of working independently as well as working in a team
- Good communication skills - fluent in English is a must-have
- Ability to multi-task with a flexible attitude
- Aligning with Booking.com's Values (Think Customer First, Succeed Together, Own It, Learn Forever, Do the Right Thing)
- Being curious, flexible, and a creative & pragmatic problem solver
- Confident yet collaborative
- Ability to influence stakeholders across all levels within the organisation
- Being proactive, resilient and having the drive to get things done
- Having sound judgement and the ability to see the big picture and simultaneously appreciate the details necessary to operationalise the strategy
- Having the courage to take positions and make tough judgment calls
- Being a team player, self aware and a good listener - a diverse group will always find the best solution!
- Ability to move with agility, prioritise workloads and meet deadlines
- Forward thinking with an interest in emerging issues in legal and policy
Booking.com's Legal & Public Affairs team is on a transformational journey at a transformational time for e-commerce and travel (think: growth, innovation, changes to how we operate); you will have an opportunity to actively shape the Department's future. The Legal & Public Affairs team is also a critical part of the enablement of Booking.com's strategy of the Connected Trip (a travel experience that includes not just accommodation, but also transportation, attractions, experiences, payments, flights etc).
This is a journey that requires close business and Legal & Public Affairs partnerships to redefine our business model, navigate complex regulatory environments, build new products, and negotiate increasingly elaborate commercial deals, among other important projects our teams get involved every day. To tackle this mission, it all starts with a strong team passionate about growing Booking.com in an ethical and sustainable way!
Who we are
To match our global footprint and the array of challenges we face, we are proud to highlight the diversity that exists across this group. We are a team of approximately 165 professionals - representing more than 36 nationalities - with lawyers qualified in many different countries, as well as non-lawyers with public policy, economics, compliance and risk backgrounds. Our team's previous experience spans across a multitude of industries with team members having worked for major global companies (including Uber, American Express, Airbnb, Amazon, Google, Nokia), tech and other startups, government entities (e.g., the Dutch Competition Authority), and reputable international law firms (e.g., Hogan Lovells, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Baker Mckenzie), and Public Affairs firms (e.g., FTI Consulting, FIPRA, Brunswick).
In addition to our day-to-day work, we actively seek opportunities for our team members to engage in the wider global legal and public affairs communities through speaking engagements, training programs, and association memberships. Some of our lawyers are Board members of Consumer Law associations, Competition Law associations, Privacy associations, etc. We also believe in actively engaging with stakeholders to share our insights on policies affecting the travel experience and how travel tech innovations can fuel the digital transformation of the travel industry. For example, we recently launched Booking.com's Public Affairs blog, where we publish our position on key policy issues ( A World Worth Experiencing ).
As a team, we believe in:
- Integrating with the Business and Legal having a "seat at the table": we are decision makers that can have a real impact on Booking.com's future
- Booking's mission of making it easier for everyone to experience the world. Travel helps people become more open minded, curious and flexible
- Allowing members of our teams to experience different areas or, if they want to be specialists, give them the tools to become more effective in their jobs
- Providing holistic legal and public affairs advice; our team should not work in silos
- Always looking for better ways of doing things, improving our Legal Operations function, innovating and exchanging best practices
- Accepting that it's OK to make mistakes as long as we learn from them
- Having a sense of humour and having fun working together; we are a team that likes to collaborate and share in joys and challenges together!
If your application is successful, your personal data may be used for a pre-employment screening check by a third party as permitted by applicable law. Depending on the vacancy and applicable law, a pre-employment screening may include employment history, education and other information (such as media information) that may be necessary for determining your qualifications and suitability for the position.