Title: Human Resources Generalist
Location: Eau Claire, WI
Company: Fortune 100 Food & Beverage Manufacturing (FuseGlobal has worked with this company for 20 years)
Initial term: 12 months (position expected to run longer)
About This Role:
This role requires flexibility to support a 24/7 factory. While the primary schedule may be aligned to day shift, the HR Generalist must be willing and able to flex hours, including early mornings, evenings, nights, weekends, holidays, and off-shift coverage as business needs require. Examples include employee relations matters, investigations, grievances, onboarding, employee communications, and site events.
Position Summary
The HR Generalist supports the Eau Claire factory by providing responsive, practical Human Resources support to employees, people leaders, and the site HR team in a 24/7 manufacturing environment. The role supports day-to-day HR operations, employee and labor relations, policy and collective bargaining agreement interpretation, recruiting and onboarding, compliance, employee experience, and continuous improvement activities. This position is expected to build trusted relationships on the production floor, model the company's values and ways of working, and help create a safe, respectful, inclusive, and high-performing workplace.
What You'll Do:
- Employee and Labor Relations
- Provide timely, fair, and consistent HR guidance to employees and leaders on workplace concerns, policy questions, attendance, performance, corrective action, benefits navigation, and other employment matters.
- Support labor relations activities in a unionized environment, including grievance preparation, fact gathering, documentation, contract interpretation support, and respectful partnership with union representatives.
- Assist with investigations and employee relations reviews by gathering facts, documenting findings, maintaining confidentiality, and escalating complex or sensitive matters to the HR Manager or appropriate HR leader.
- Partner with people leaders to draft, review, and administer corrective action and performance documentation consistent with site practices, policy, and applicable labor agreement requirements.
- Factory Presence and Employee Experience
- Maintain regular visibility on the production floor and across departments to build rapport, answer questions, identify concerns early, and reinforce HR accessibility across all shifts.
- Support employee engagement, recognition, retention, wellness, communication, and culture initiatives that strengthen trust, inclusion, and belonging at the site.
- Use clear, respectful, and practical communication to help employees and leaders understand expectations, resources, and available support.
- Recruiting, Onboarding, and Talent Support
- Support recruiting and hiring activities for temporary, hourly, salaried, intern, and other site roles as assigned, including requisition coordination, interview scheduling, candidate communication, offer support, and new hire preparation.
- Assist with new hire orientation and onboarding activities, including HR content delivery, employee documentation, system access coordination, and early new-hire check-ins.
- Partner with hiring managers, Talent Acquisition, and HR Operations to ensure a positive candidate and new-hire experience
- HR Operations, Systems, and Compliance
- Maintain accurate HR records and support HR systems, reporting, document management, personnel files, employee lists, dashboards, and other administrative processes as assigned.
- Serve as a point of contact for employees on HR process questions and escalate issues to the Service Center, HR Operations, Benefits, Payroll, Legal, or other support teams as appropriate.
- Support compliance with applicable employment laws, company policies, site procedures, food safety requirements, quality expectations, privacy practices, and document retention standards.
- Assist with leave, accommodation, attendance, timekeeping, benefits, payroll, and employee data questions within assigned scope and in partnership with subject matter experts.
- Continuous Improvement and Factory Routines
- Participate in site routines and improvement activities as assigned, which may include shift handoffs, operational reviews, 5S activities, training initiatives, people KPI reviews, and cross-functional project work.
- Identify trends in employee relations, corrective action, attendance, turnover, onboarding, and employee feedback, and recommend practical actions to reduce risk and improve the employee experience.
- Contribute to HR projects and continuous improvement efforts that simplify work, clarify ownership, and strengthen support for the factory.
- Safety, Quality, and Compliance Expectations
- Follow all factory safety, environmental, food safety, quality, Good Manufacturing Practices, and site security requirements.
- Report safety, food safety, quality, compliance, or workplace concerns promptly through appropriate channels.
- Model integrity, confidentiality, professionalism, respect, and compliance in all interactions and decisions.
- Support employee understanding of site policies and expectations through consistent communication and coaching.
What You Bring:
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business, Industrial Relations, Organizational Development, or a related field preferred. Equivalent relevant HR experience may be considered.
- 3+ years of HR generalist, HR operations, employee relations, recruiting, or related experience preferred.
- Manufacturing, supply chain, food manufacturing, CPG, or other 24/7 operational environment experience preferred.
- Union environment, collective bargaining agreement interpretation, grievance support, or labor relations experience preferred.
- Working knowledge of employment practices and applicable laws such as FLSA, FMLA, ADA, EEO, NLRA, and related state/federal requirements preferred.
- Experience with Microsoft Office; HRIS, SAP SuccessFactors, Kronos/UKG, Indeavor, SharePoint, or similar systems preferred.
- Skills and Competencies
- Strong employee relations judgment with the ability to remain calm, fair, objective, and solution-focused in sensitive situations.
- Ability to build trust with hourly and salaried employees, people leaders, union representatives, and cross-functional partners.
- Clear verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to explain policies and expectations in practical, employee-friendly language.
- High attention to detail, data accuracy, confidentiality, and follow-through.
- Strong organization, prioritization, and time-management skills in a fast-paced environment with shifting priorities.
- Analytical and problem-solving mindset with the ability to identify trends, ask good questions, and recommend practical solutions.
- Flexibility, adaptability, and ability to support multiple shifts and urgent business needs in a 24/7 factory.
- Demonstrated commitment to respect, inclusion, safety, quality, compliance, collaboration, courage, speed, and continuous learning.
- Work Environment and Essential Elements
- Work is performed in both office and manufacturing settings, with regular time spent on the production floor.
- May be exposed to normal factory conditions including noise, temperature variation, production equipment, PPE requirements, and food manufacturing hygiene standards.
- Requires ability to communicate in person, by phone, by email, and through Microsoft Teams or other systems.
- Requires ability to sit, stand, walk the plant, climb stairs, use a computer and keyboard, review documents, attend meetings, and manage multiple priorities.
- Must be able to meet the essential functions of the role with or without reasonable accommodation
Responsibilities are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, skills, or efforts required. Additional duties may be assigned to support the HR team and factory operations. The HR Generalist will be expected to partner closely with the HR Manager and site HR team to ensure alignment, appropriate escalation, and continuity of support.
Compensation & Benefits:
- Up to $41 per hour + overtime
- Medical insurance
- Dental insurance
- Vision insurance
- 401(k)
- Disability insurance
About FuseGlobal:
FuseGlobal is a partnership of people and brand-leading companies, working together to make things run better. For 25 years we have brought functionality to complex business and production processes and supply chains, resulting in enterprises that run smarter and more sustainably. Interested in digital manufacturing, industrial engineering, supply chain management, all-things tech, and energy & the environment? This is where we live. Engage with us!
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