Employment Counsel - Whatnot

🚀 Whatnot

Whatnot is the largest livestream shopping platform in North America and Europe to buy, sell, and discover the things you love. We’re building the future of ecommerce, bringing together community, shopping and entertainment. We are committed to our values, and as a remote co-located team, we operate out of hubs within the US, UK, Ireland, Poland, and Germany today.

We’re innovating in the fast-paced world of live auctions from fashion, beauty, electronics to collectibles like trading cards, comic books, and even live plants. Whatnot has something for everyone.

And, we’re growing. Whatnot has been one of the fastest growing marketplaces and we’re hiring forward-thinking problem solvers across all functional areas.

💻 Role

We are looking for an exceptional Employment Counsel to support Whatnot’s growing global workforce. As the first employment attorney at Whatnot, you will closely partner with our People team, the business, and other stakeholders to build and manage employment programs that enable high performers to achieve their best work. As a member of Whatnot’s legal team, this person will provide day to day counseling on a broad range of employment issues, including HR practices, performance management, diversity and inclusion, separations, recruiting, hiring, compensation and benefits, wage and hour, and labor relations. The ideal candidate pairs US and international employment law experience, with the ability to develop scalable processes and collaborate effectively across technical and business teams in a fast-paced and fun environment. 

• Act as a trusted advisor to the People team and managers on a wide range of U.S. and global matters, such as recruiting, compensation, performance management, separations, internal investigations, leaves of absence, discrimination, harassment, diversity and inclusion, wage and hour compliance, restrictive covenants, reasonable accommodations, employee benefits, employee classification, and other employment related topics
• Develop, implement and manage compliant employment programs and practices and help to guide our employment legal strategy to create a culture of high performance and alignment to Whatnot’s values and People philosophy
• Draft and review employment-related documents, including compensation agreements, settlement agreements, non-competition agreements, job offers, employment agreements, and severance agreements
• Leverage your experience to proactively identify and mitigate employment legal risks
• Provide cross-border mentorship to support Whatnot’s hiring and employment practices in all of the countries where Whatnot does business 
• Work with the People team on the development and interpretation of policies and programs, including employee trainings
• Stay current on relevant labor and employment law legal updates, including case law and legislation, and disseminate information to relevant team members quickly and efficiently
• Supervise, lead, and evaluate outside counsel on employment related matters, including local counsel in non-US jurisdictions, to handle employment and immigration issues, as well as litigation, across offices
• Represent and defend Whatnot as necessary in employment disputes, including lawyer’s letters and administrative charges
• Advise and assist with Whatnot’s general legal needs as they arise.

Team members in this role are required to be within commuting distance of our New York City, San Francisco, or Los Angeles hubs.

👋 You

Curious about who thrives at Whatnot? We’ve found that low ego, a growth mindset, and leaning into action and high impact goes a long way here.

As our first Employment Counsel you should have:

• A law degree and admission to practice in at least one US jurisdiction (preferably NY or CA)
• 7+ years combined experience directly advising on employment-related issues, including investigations, employee relations, compensation, discrimination and harassment, terminations, hiring practices, best practices/policies, leaves and accommodations, and managing employment-related litigation
• Proven ability navigating global employment law issues in various regions, including experience with works councils and legal consultation obligations, global investigations, global mobility issues, and global HR compliance issues
• Experience handling employment litigation matters in multiple jurisdictions, including retaining and managing outside counsel to ensure that all aspects of the company's legal representation are of the highest quality, and representing multi-national companies involved in complex disputes with outstanding outcomes
• Substantive employment law experience and litigation experience
• Outstanding written and verbal communication and analytical skills with proven critical thinking, creativity, and risk analysis
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including outstanding legal writing skills
• Willingness to take on new challenges and support cross functional initiatives
• The ability to work independently to navigate a fast-paced environment, and adeptness at making sound decisions and delivering practical advice in ambiguous situations
• Demonstrated ability to manage internal employees and outside counsel effectively
• A good, “can-do” attitude, a curious mindset, and a sense of humor

💰Compensation

$260,000/year to $325,000/year + benefits + equity.

The salary range may be inclusive of several levels that would be applicable to the position. Final salary will be based on a number of factors including, level, relevant prior experience, skills and expertise. This range is only inclusive of base salary, not benefits (more details below) or equity.

🎁 Benefits

• Flexible Time off Policy and Company-wide Holidays (including a spring and winter break)
• Health Insurance options including Medical, Dental, Vision
• Work From Home Support
  • Home office setup allowance
  • Monthly allowance for cell phone and internet
• Care benefits
  • Monthly allowance for wellness
  • Annual allowance towards Childcare
  • Lifetime benefit for family planning, such as adoption or fertility expenses
• Retirement; 401k offering for Traditional and Roth accounts in the US (employer match up to 4% of base salary) and Pension plans internationally
• Monthly allowance to dogfood the app
• Parental Leave
  • 16 weeks of paid parental leave + one month gradual return to work *company leave allowances run concurrently with country leave requirements which take precedence.

💛 EOE

Whatnot is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value diversity, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, parental status, disability status, or any other status protected by local law. We believe that our work is better and our company culture is improved when we encourage, support, and respect the different skills and experiences represented within our workforce.

Last updated: 19 hours ago