Director of Communications

The New York City Office of Labor Relations (OLR) serves as the Mayor’s chief representative in the conduct of all labor relations between the City of New York and labor unions representing employees of the City. OLR is responsible for negotiating and administering collective bargaining agreements for approximately 150 bargaining units representing over 300,000 employees across the broad and diverse spectrum of municipal services the City offers.

In addition, OLR administers the City’s Health Benefits Program, which provides health insurance coverage to approximately 1.2 million employees, retirees, and dependents; the Deferred Compensation Plan, which manages more than $30 billion in employee retirement assets; the Employee Assistance Program, providing mental health support to City employees and their families, and WorkWell NYC, the City’s workplace wellness program.

Job Description

Reporting to the First Deputy Commissioner and exercising broad independent judgment, the Director of Communications is a senior executive responsible for overseeing the communications efforts of the entire agency, ensuring OLR is communicating with City and external entities to provide clear information and further the agency’s goals and priorities. The Director will also serve as the principal advisor to the Commissioner and First Deputy Commissioner on all matters related to agency communications.
This is a new role in the Office of Labor Relations and offers the opportunity to create a new division from the ground up and shape the communications efforts of an agency whose work touches every City agency and over 1 million city employees, retirees, and their dependents.

Key Responsibilities

- Oversee all communications matters regarding the City’s health benefit program, which serves over 1 million city employees, retirees, and their dependents, who rely on information from OLR about these benefits. Will work with OLR vendors on communication material about the City's new NYCE PPO health plan and internal City communications to employees and agencies regarding the plan and other health plans we offer.
- Work with the Employee Benefits Division on communications for all employee benefits program administered by OLR - including the Deferred Compensation Plan, Management Benefits Fund, and Flexible Spending Account.
- Oversee communications for the Employee Assistance Program, which provides mental health support for City employees and their families, and work closely with the WorkWell NYC team, which administers the City’s worksite wellness program.
- Act as primary contact for press inquiries related to any of OLR’s functions, including collective bargaining and health benefits.
- Manage the appearance and content of OLR’s website to ensure it delivers important information about employee benefits in an efficient and user-friendly way.
- Act as a key contact for other city agencies and governmental entities regarding any OLR communications issues.
- Supervise two staff members who will form the rest of the communications team.

EXECUTIVE PROGRAM SPECIALIST - 07004