Senior Legal Counsel (Employment)

Hello, we’re Starling.

Banking was broken – so we decided to fix it. The vision? Fast technology, fair service and honest values. All at the tap of a phone, all the time. We built Britain’s first digital bank. One hard-won banking licence later, we set about giving people a new way to spend, save and manage their money (and take better care of the planet, too). We’re changing banking for good. Back then, we were obsessed with unravelling the knotty world of finance and solving people’s problems rather than selling them stuff. We still are.

Since then, we’ve grown. A lot. Over four million accounts (and four account types!). A team of thousands. Headquartered in London with offices in Cardiff, Dublin, Manchester and Southampton. Seven years voted Which? Recommended Provider and Britain's Best Banking Brand. Still zero branches. Our culture is open, inclusive and focused on solving real customer problems, with an emphasis on doing the right thing, even when it’s not always the easy thing. From our approach to working together and sustainability to how we build our products, our decisions need to make the world – and Starling – a better place to be. Everyone at Starling is essential to our mission, which is really quite simple: to solve our customer’s problems – and build the best bank in the world!

And now we're providing Starling to other banks, via a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) proposition through our subsidiary Engine, using the proprietary technology platform that it uses to power our own bank.

We are looking for a senior employment lawyer to support the business on all contentious and non-contentious employment matters. The role will report directly to the team’s Group Head of Employment Legal. We are happy to consider applications from candidates who will be able to commute to any of our offices.

You will have significant influence and exposure across the Starling Group, with the responsibility of managing an employment lawyer in the team.

Your work will include:

• Advising the People team and, sometimes, the wider business on all aspects of employment law, including on employment related regulatory issues such as the application of the SMCR and FCA’s Code of Conduct;
• Delivering and managing legal support to the Group throughout the entire employee life cycle, including policy, hiring (including executive service agreements), dismissals, grievances and appeals, disciplinaries, settlement agreements and employment status matters;
• Delivering and managing legal support to the corporate and commercial legal functions, including on the application of TUPE;
• Advising on regulatory issues associated with financial services and banking;
• Managing international projects for Engine by Starling, either in EMEA or globally, including working with external counsel;
• Working with the Group’s Reward team to advise on compensation arrangements, including on the operation of malus and clawback, deferred compensation arrangements and remuneratIon policies;
• Managing multiple projects and supporting colleagues to ensure business and enterprise-wide initiatives are executed in a timely and accurate manner;
• Providing employment law training to the People team and wider business; and
• Instructing and working with outside counsel where necessary on specialist matters.

Requirements

• Excellent legal training and 6-10 years’ PQE gained at a law firm and/or in-house;
• Very strong technical employment law experience;
• Experience of banking and financial services;
• Experience handling regulatory issues in the context of the SMCR, conduct, remuneration matters, and regulatory inquiries; and
• Capable of working in a fast-paced environment and keen to grow and develop within the organisation.

In-house experience in financial services would be preferred, but is not essential for the right candidate. PQE is a guide only.

Benefits

• 25 days holiday (plus take your public holiday allowance whenever works best for you)
• An extra day’s holiday for your birthday
• Annual leave is increased with length of service, and you can choose to buy or sell up to five extra days off
• 16 hours paid volunteering time a year
• Salary sacrifice, company enhanced pension scheme
• Life insurance at 4x your salary
• Private Medical Insurance with VitalityHealth including mental health support and cancer care. Partner benefits include discounts with Waitrose, Mr&Mrs Smith and Peloton
• Generous family-friendly policies
• Perkbox membership giving access to retail discounts, a wellness platform for physical and mental health, and weekly free and boosted perks
• Access to initiatives like Cycle to Work and Salary Sacrificed Gym partnerships

About Us

You may be put off applying for a role because you don't tick every box. Forget that! While we can’t accommodate every flexible working request, we're always open to discussion. So, if you're excited about working with us, but aren’t sure if you're 100% there yet, get in touch anyway.

We’re on a mission to radically reshape banking – and that starts with our brilliant team. Whatever came before, we’re proud to bring together people of all backgrounds and experiences who love working together to solve problems.