human resources officer

Org. Setting and Reporting

The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA ) forms part of the United Nations Secretariat and, like the other regional commissions, operates under the supervision of the United Nations Economic and Social Council.

ESCWA comprises 21 Arab countries in Western Asia and North Africa.

ESCWA provides a framework for the formulation and harmonization of sectoral policies for member countries, a platform for congress and coordination, a home for expertise and knowledge, and an information observatory.

ESCWA activities are coordinated with the divisions and main offices of the Headquarters of the United Nations, specialized agencies, and international and regional organizations, including the League of Arab States and its subsidiary bodies, and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

This HR Officer position is located in the People Management Central (HR) of the Resource Management and Service Development Division (RMSDD) of ESCWA.

The HR Officer reports directly to the Chief of PMC (HR). The incumbent will be under an overall supervision of the Director of Administration/Resource Management and Service Development Division (RMSDD).

Responsibilities

General

• Manages and supervises a team of HR professionals across a variety of HR disciplines
• Provides specialist advice and support to internal and external clients on human resources related matters including recruitment, administration of entitlements, outreach, workforce management, data analytics and other components of Human Resources
• Continuously works and supports senior management in process review and efficiency
• Reviews policies and procedures and recommends change
• Provides advice and suggestions on organizational change management
• Supports, enforces and implements ESCWA's efforts to expand its services to other UN partners in the area of HR services
• Keeps abreast of developments in various areas of human resources for continuous advancement of the HR function Recruitment and placement
• Develops workforce plans
• Develops outreach plans to identify sources in alignment with the diversity and equality of ESCWA's workforce needs
• Identifies upcoming vacancies and oversees in all stages of recruitment (announcements, assessments, job offers and others)
• Reviews recommendation on the selection of candidate by client offices.
• Serves as ex-officio in appointment and promotion bodies, examinations boards, and prepares and presents cases to these bodies.
• Supervises and monitors the work of the Human Resources Partners in carrying out all human resources administrative transactions including preparation of personnel actions, benefits and entitlements, maintenance of staffing tables, and processing of contracts
• Plans, organizes, develops, coordinates and administers programmes and tests related to recruitment of professional, general service and other categories of staff. Administration of entitlements
• Provides advice on interpretation and application of policies, regulations and rules. Reviews and provides advice on exceptions to policies, regulation and rules and justice cases pertaining to decisions made by ESCWA relating to the administration of the international and national personnel.
• Administers and provides advice on salary, benefits and entitlements, travel, and social security entitlements including onboarding, contract management to national and international staff. Administration on Non-Staff Personnel
• Reviews and recommends the levels of remuneration for Consultants and Individual Contractors
• Reviews and advises on policies related to recruitment and employment of non-staff personnel (interns, CICs, UNVs, ex gratia personnel etc.) Other duties
• Advises and counsels staff in respect of rights, responsibilities, code of conduct and difficulties associated with work and entitlements.
• Supports the process and conducts and coordinates salary surveys assessing salaries and related allowances of locally-recruited staff, housing and other surveys.
• The HRO contributes to the monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of delegated authorities, through inter alia, the Human Resources Management Dashboard, Service Level Agreements, and the Senior Managers' Compact, Delegation of Authority Platform.
• Contributes to the development of a set of actionable and targeted change management plans, and reports on possible gaps and risks and recommends corrective actions.
• Assists with the development of HRS communication strategies on HR issues and regular formal and informal meetings with stakeholders and partners.
• Conducts research on precedents, policy rulings and procedures. Maintains human resources information systems including constant update and generation of information and reports for use by management, management of HR data analytics.
• Prepares classification analysis of jobs in Professional and General Service and related categories.

Competencies

• PROFESSIONALISM: Knowledge of human resources policies, practices and procedures and ability to apply them in an organizational setting. Ability to identify issues, formulate opinions, make conclusions and recommendations. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.
• COMMUNICATION: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
• ACCOUNTABILITY: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in human resources management, business or public administration, social sciences, education or related area is required.

A first-level university degree in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Job - Specific Qualification

Not available.

Work Experience

A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in human resources management, administration or related area is required.

A minimum of two (2) years of experience and demonstrated proficiency in integrated information management systems, such as SAP, PeopleSoft, or a similar enterprise management system (ERP) in performing tasks and transactions related to administration of staff entitlements in addition to a minimum of two (2) years of supervisory experience is required.

A minimum of three (3) years of working experience in recruitment and the use of global recruitment platforms is desirable.

A minimum of three (3) years of experience in budget preparation process in relation to staffing requirements is desirable.

A minimum of two (2) years of experience in researching, compiling and drafting responses to Administration of Justice (AoJ) system cases is desirable.

A minimum of three (3) years of direct experience in the UN or other similar global international organizations is desirable.

Experience with the provision of services to external client offices at various categories and modalities of staff is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. In addition, Arabic is a working language at ESCWA. For this position, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of Arabic is desirable.

Note:
"Fluency" equals a rating of 'fluent' in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand) and "Knowledge of" equals a rating of 'confident' in two of the four areas.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Special Notice

At the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity.

All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. The United Nations is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect.

The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities.

Special requests related to applicants with disabilities may be accommodated, upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

For such requests, please send an email to escwa- with subject line "Request for Reasonable Accommodation and Job Opening Number ".

The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance and geographical diversity in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.

For this position, applicants from the following Member States, which are unrepresented or under-represented in the UN Secretariat as of 31 May 2024, are strongly encouraged to apply: Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahrain, Belize, Brunei Darussalam, China, Cuba, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Germany, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Libya, Liechtenstein, Malta, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Nauru, Oman, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United States of America, Vanuatu.

Applicants, who successfully go through a competitive recruitment process and are recommended for selection and/or inclusion in the roster of pre-approved candidates for subsequent job openings at the same level and with similar functions, may have their application information and roster status shared with other UN Organizations.

Such applicants may be contacted by other UN Organizations for similar job openings, subject to the confirmation of their interest.

Placement on the roster is no guarantee of a future selection.

Pursuant to section 7.11 of ST/AI/2012/2/Rev.1, candidates recruited through the young professionals programme who have not served for a minimum of two years in the position of their initial assignment are not eligible to apply to this position.

Appointment or assignment against this position is for an initial period of one year.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts.

The term "sexual exploitation" means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another.

The term "sexual abuse" means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions.

The term "sexual harassment" means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator's working relationship.

Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible.

The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs.

The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c).

Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised.

This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions.

Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on "Manuals" in the "Help" tile of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines.

Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening.

No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted.

Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING).

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS' BANK ACCOUNTS.

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