Temporary In-House Senior Legal Counsel (Employment Law)

Mission Support and Test Services, LLC (MSTS) manages and operates the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) for the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).  Our MISSION is to help ensure the security of the United States and its allies by providing high-hazard experimentation and incident response capabilities through operations, engineering, education, field, and integration services and by acting as environmental stewards to the Site’s Cold War legacy.  Our VISION is to be the user site of choice for large-scale, high-hazard, national security experimentation, with premier facilities and capabilities below ground, on the ground, and in the air. (See NNSS.gov for our unique capabilities.) Our 2,750+ professional, craft, and support employees are called upon to innovate, collaborate, and deliver on some of the more difficult nuclear security challenges facing the world today.  

• MSTS offers our full-time employees highly competitive salaries and benefits packages including medical, dental, and vision; both a pension and a 401k; paid time off and 96 hours of paid holidays; relocation (if located more than 75 miles from work location); tuition assistance and reimbursement; and more.  
• MSTS is a limited liability company consisting of Honeywell International Inc. (Honeywell), Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (Jacobs), and HII Nuclear Inc.

NNSS is seeking a highly qualified and experienced candidate for the position of temporary Senior Employment Law Attorney in Las Vegas, NV (or remote).  This is a temporary, part-time (30 hrs/week) position, with an anticipated duration of approximately 6 months, but it may be extended on an as-needed basis.  In this role, you will help the company keep abreast of federal and multi-state employment law developments, advise the company on employment law issues, directly defend employment-related complaints and claims against the company (such as EEOC charges), and manage outside counsel in employment litigation matters.  This position requires substantive employment law litigation experience. The Senior Employment Law Attorney reports to the MSTS General Counsel.

Duties include:

• Provide legal counsel and guidance to Company officials on various and complex employment matters.
• Advise on, and facilitate, company compliance with multi-state employment law updates
• Manage, direct and participate in employment related litigation, arbitration, and mediation.
• Conduct or manage and direct administrative agency matters (i.e. unemployment, EEOC, DOL, NERC, DOE OHA, etc.).
• Respond to miscellaneous demand letters and negotiate settlements as appropriate.
• Prepare legal correspondence, pleadings, discovery documents, and motions and briefs relating to litigation and appellate matters.
• Assist in the oversight of the Employee Concerns Program and assist in Ethics, President’s Hotline and other miscellaneous employee concerns.
• Provide guidance for human resources, employee relations, and labor relations on a wide variety of legal issues and risks.
• Advise management when legal concerns arise with employees or employment policies.
• Review and assess risk of adverse employment actions (i.e., terminations, pip process, discipline).
• Provide guidance and review of company employment policies for bargaining and non-bargaining employees.
• Assist in the implementation of updates to prime contract requirements relating to employment as well as implementation of new federal and state legislation to ensure legally and contractually compliant practices.
• Perform legal research and draft legal memos.
• Work diligently to identify/address legal risks and to prevent litigation.
• Provide oversight of ERISA legal guidance provided to the benefits committee.
• Provide guidance to FMLA and ADA administrators and to management as necessary.
• Assist in the implementation of new prime contract requirements relating to employment as well as implementation and review of new legislation to ensure legally and contractually compliant practices.
• Advise leaders and management on a broad range of corporate governance, regulatory and compliance matters, and provide a high-quality legal partnership to the business leadership.
• Develop and disseminate policy and direction on legal aspects of operating activities for the guidance and control of operating divisions.
• Keep abreast of federal and state legislation and regulations and local laws, which might affect the Company industry- specific regulations, in particular, Department of Energy regulations and policies governing Managing and Operating Contractors.
• Provide legal guidance relating to worker’s compensation portfolio of claims, including direction to outside counsel and claims adjusters.

• Juris Doctorate degree from an ABA-accredited law school and 8 years’ experience practicing as a licensed attorney in relevant area(s) of law with a law firm, government agency, and/or corporate in-house legal department. 
• Must have excellent writing, research, negotiation, and analytical skills. 
• Must have passed a state bar examination and be a member in good standing of that state’s bar. 
• Must be eligible to become a member of the Nevada State Bar (or to be admitted to the Nevada State Bar as in-house counsel), or be a member of the state bar in good standing in the state of residence if working remotely. 
• Experience in employment law, including conducting investigations, handling EEOC charges, and employment law litigation in state or federal courts. 
• Able to utilize independent judgment, creativity, and initiative and ability to apply knowledge and experience to resolve problems, compose correspondence and technical reports, and accomplish goals where established procedures may not be specific. 
• Able to prioritize and schedule multiple activities of the organizational unit. 
• Must possess excellent oral and written communications skills. 
• Must possess excellent interpersonal skills and ability to communicate with all types of people in a tactful, professional, and effective manner while screening and maintaining confidentiality.
• Pre-placement physical examination, which includes a drug screen, is required. MSTS maintains a substance abuse policy that includes random drug testing.
• Must possess a valid driver’s license.

Ability to obtain a HSPD-12 Personal Identity Verification credential under the Department of Energy Order 206.2, ‘Identity, Credential, and Access Management,’ and Supplemental Directive NNSA SD 206.2, ‘Implementation of Personal Identity Verification for Uncleared Contractors.’

MSTS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, veteran status or other characteristics protected by law. MSTS is a background screening, drug-free workplace.

Hourly range for this position is: $86.43 - $133.97

Starting salary is determined based on the position market value, the individual candidate education and experience and internal equity.