HR Compliance Specialist Job Description
Table of Contents
An HR Compliance Specialist is responsible for ensuring an organization’s compliance with relevant legislation.
This role encompasses a wide range of tasks, including ensuring compliance with industry-specific regulations, health and safety legislation, and employment practices.
An HR Compliance Specialist may specialize in a particular industry or work on a contract basis across a broad range of businesses. The role is highly detailed and diverse, can be a stepping-stone to senior HR management responsibility.
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What Does an HR Compliance Specialist Typically Do?
An HR Compliance Specialist audits business functions within the organization to check compliance and implements changes where necessary.
Their responsibilities and tasks typically include:
- Auditing the organization to check compliance with relevant legislation
- Developing improvement plans
- Implementing the plans
- Managing external audits and certifications
- Reporting to management on the compliance status
- Advising departmental heads on ongoing compliance improvement
- Monitoring legislative changes
Auditing the Organization To Check Compliance With Relevant Legislation
An HR Compliance Specialist audits each department in the organization to ensure they are compliant with all relevant regulations. The relevant legislation may vary from department to department, so the HR Compliance Specialist must be an expert in many fields.
The audit process must also be objective, dispassionate, and independent. The HR Compliance Specialist may have to demonstrate diplomacy and tact in the audit process and must be collaborative rather than confrontational to achieve success.
Developing Improvement Plans
An HR Compliance Specialist works with each department to develop plans for corrective action, including scope, empirical targets, tactics, and metrics. Collaboration with each department is necessary to ensure that the changes do not feel imposed.
The HR Compliance Specialist understands and employs problem-solving techniques to generate fast, measurable, and sustainable improvement.
Implementing the Plans
An HR Compliance Specialist is responsible for the implementation of the improvement plans and must involve all stakeholders to ensure success. Stakeholders may range from staff to departmental management and must all understand and buy into the improvement process.
An HR Compliance Specialist should be an expert in collaborative problem-solving techniques and should ensure that the solutions are generated from within the team as much as possible. Successful HR Compliance Specialists are careful not to impose solutions but rather to focus on achieving the desired outcomes.
Reporting to Management on the Compliance Status
An HR Compliance Specialist reports to management regularly, detailing the compliance status by area or department, and highlighting any potential issues or legislative changes that may affect the organization’s operations.
The role is an advisory one, but the HR Compliance Specialist may be tasked with rectifying any issues raised. An HR Compliance Specialist’s presentation skills and persuasiveness ensure that any compliance issues are treated as a priority and not an imposition.
Advising Departmental Heads on Ongoing Compliance Improvement
Compliance is a process of continuous monitoring and improvement, and the HR Compliance Specialist will be expected to consult with departmental heads on possible refinements to their operations regularly. An HR Compliance Specialist must be proactive in this task, suggesting improvements before compliance issues arise, but without causing unnecessary disruption to the departments’ day-to-day activities.
Monitoring Legislative Changes
An HR Compliance Specialist should be aware of any impending or imminent changes to legislation that could affect the organization’s operations. Any changes must be communicated to management, and the HR Compliance Specialist must prepare contingency plans for immediate implementation to ensure the business is not interrupted.
Roles an HR Compliance Specialist Typically Collaborates With
An HR Compliance Specialist will work closely with the following posts:
| Collaborative Roles | ||
| HR Manager | Human Resources Executive | Senior HR Specialist |
| Consultant | HR Director | HR Coordinator |
| Director of Production | Finance Director | Director of Operations |
HR Compliance Specialist Salary
The national average salary for An HR Compliance Specialist will typically be between $54,000 and $68,000 annually in the U.S. The median is around $60,464.
What Is the HR Compliance Specialist Pay Difference by Location?
Average salaries for An HR Compliance Specialist differ by location as follows:
| City | Average Salary |
| San Francisco, CA | $75,580 |
| Seattle, WA | $66,111 |
| Denver, CO | $61,147 |
| Austin, TX | $59,466 |
| Washington, DC | $67,308 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $59,840 |
| Boston, MA | $68,124 |
| New York, NY | $72,738 |
What Is the HR Compliance Specialist Pay Difference by Experience Level?
Depending on experience, pay will vary as follows:
| Experience Level | Average Salary |
| < 1 year | $58,388 |
| 1–4 years | $62,194 |
| 5–9 years | $63,347 |
| 10–19 years | $63,347 |
| 20+ years | $63,347 |
HR Compliance Specialist Job Description Template
We at [Company Name] are proud of our reputation for safe, fair, and forward-thinking business practices. We are looking to hire an experienced and responsible HR Compliance Specialist to ensure we can maintain our spotless track-record going forward.
You will work across our company to help our management and staff understand compliance requirements and will be a resource to implement improvement plans. You will also work with external agencies to maintain our certifications and qualifications.
You will report to senior management and be expected to work independently with all levels of our company.
HR Compliance Specialist Responsibilities
Your activities as an HR Compliance Specialist will include:
- Measuring current compliance with relevant legislation across the board
- Developing and implementing improvement plans
- Ensuring we meet all standards required for external audits
- Advising departments on how to improve continuously
- Reporting to management on status, proposed improvements, and impending legislative changes
Required Skill Set
You should bring the following qualifications, skills, and behaviors to the role:
- Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Regulatory Affairs, or HR
- At least five years’ experience in the regulatory or compliance field
- Expert knowledge of legislation and regulations
- Industry-specific knowledge preferred but not required
- Excellent planning, problem-solving, and collaborative skills
- Superb analytical and decision-making skills
- Excellent written and oral communication skills
- Collaborative and supportive mindset
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