Centre for Environmental Rights – Advancing Environmental Rights in South Africa

The Centre for Environmental Rights is looking for a bright, energetic and passionate professional to become its HR & Office Manager. We are looking for someone with a strong human resources background who can take primary responsibility for our HR management and administration, but who can also oversee the effective operation of our office. This person must promote a collaborative, people-oriented approach that advances our objectives of diversity, inclusion and transformation, and contributes to the enhancement of staff morale and well-being. We seek to employ someone who is passionate about environmental and social justice, and who will take pride in being a key member of the team at the CER.

Location

Based in Cape Town

Qualifications, skills and experience

• A bachelor’s degree  in human resources management and office administration (a postgraduate qualification would be an advantage, but we will consider other relevant or appropriate qualifications)
• A minimum of 5 years’ working experience
• Good understanding of employment law and human resources best practice
• Excellent written and spoken English, with additional South African languages an advantage
• Excellent people, management and networking skills
• A strong communicator with high emotional intelligence
• Ability to multi-task, work under pressure and meet multiple deadlines
• Complete reliability, and ability to take initiative to improve systems and practices and attention to detail
• A commitment to high quality service
• A sensitivity to social issues and the needs of communities impacted by environmental degradation and injustice.
• A commitment to diversity, inclusion and transformation.

Key responsibilities

• Ensuring that the Centre’s human resources policies and systems are communicated, implemented and kept updated
• Administration of human resources, staff well-being and mentoring
• Operational contract management, such as lease agreements
• Managing IT support coordination and other asset infrastructure
• Providing hands-on support to the Centre’s Diversity, Inclusion and Transformation Programme
• Ensuring CER financial policy is followed for payment
• Providing general support to accountant to ensure she has all the information needed for bookkeeping
• Managing all administrative staff and in so doing:
  • Checking payment authorisations for operational matters
  • Overseeing grants administration
  • Managing petty cash and completing petty cash sheet
  • Assisting staff with payment requests
  • Convening staff meetings, including remote set up and preparing agenda for staff meetings
  • Overseeing all travel arrangements: booking of flights, accommodation and car hire; and  building relationships with travel service providers
  • Overseeing stock of office supplies and stationery

Salary

The salary range is R359 672 to R486 615 (total cost to company) and the salary offered will be dependent on factors that include the qualifications, level of expertise and experience of the successful candidate.

CER is committed to diversity, inclusion and transformation. Candidates from historically disadvantaged or marginalised groups are strongly encouraged to apply for this post.

Working for the CER

The Centre for Environmental Rights is a non-profit organisation and law clinic. We are environmental rights lawyers who take diversity, inclusion and transformation seriously.

As South Africa’s largest public interest environmental law organisation, we leverage our expertise and commitment to fight for environmental justice for all. We take on the big environmental fights – high-stakes cases where we can empower local communities to defend their rights to a healthy environment, clean air and mitigate the impacts of climate change and set powerful precedents for other cases, and help improve policy and practice across the country.

Winning the legal case is only part of the battle. CER’s litigation work is strengthened by local empowerment, dedicated policy and advocacy work as well as strategic communications. We work closely with partners in affected communities and with other civil society and public interest law organisations particularly in the environmental and social justice sectors.

We work across the following core themes: Mining, Pollution and Climate Change, Corporate Accountability & Transparency, and Activist Support and Training. Our main office is in Observatory, Cape Town.