Senior Employment Counsel

About the role

Skydio is seeking a Senior Employment Counsel to serve as the primary legal partner for the People Operations team, owning the full spectrum of employment-law matters for the company. You will counsel on issues that span corporate teams, manufacturing operations, field operations, and international expansion, ensuring practices remain consistent, compliant, safe, and operationally realistic. This role demands deep general legal acumen across employment law, from hourly manufacturing worker matters to helping set up foreign subsidiaries, requiring both expertise and humility to know when to call for backup. You will be responsible for owning employment-related aspects of setting up foreign subsidiaries and negotiating contracts with contractors, recruiting organizations, and HR vendors. The position requires triaging and ruthlessly prioritizing multiple projects while managing outside counsel on specialized, high-risk, or international matters. You will provide clear, scalable guidance on recruitment and pre-hire issues, leaves of absence, reasonable accommodations, investigations, wage and hour, performance management, HR policy, and separations. This is a director-level role reporting to the General Counsel, built for someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment and likes to roll up their sleeves.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Be the primary legal partner for the People Operations team, owning day-to-day employment counseling while managing outside counsel on specialized, high-risk, or international matters.
• Anticipate employment-law risks early and address them pragmatically across corporate teams and manufacturing operations.
• Provide People Operations clear, scalable guidance on recruitment and pre-hire issues, leaves of absence, reasonable accommodations, investigations, wage and hour, performance management, HR policy, and separations.
• Ensure manufacturing, field operations, and corporate employment practices are consistent, compliant, safe, and operationally realistic for a robotics and AI manufacturing environment.
• Handle administrative agency matters such as the EEOC and DOL, including pre-litigation employment issues and OFCCP compliance reports.
• Draft and comment on training materials and provide select training to people leaders on employment policies and procedures.
• Assist in the development and documentation of sales commission and other incentive compensation plans to align with business objectives.
• Responsible for OFCCP compliance reports and similar regulatory filings in a manufacturing and defense context.
• Advise Benefits on compliance with relevant law and review and provide comments on contracts for company benefits packages.
• Own employment-related aspects of setting up foreign subsidiaries, including coordination with local counsel and operational teams.
• Negotiate contracts, including DPAs, with contractors, recruiting organizations, HR vendors, and similar organizations to mitigate legal risk.
• Draft and update the Employee Handbook to reflect evolving best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Assist in administering and managing employee equity plans to ensure accuracy and compliance.
• Oversee HR and payroll audits as needed to identify and remediate compliance or operational gaps.
• Manage other projects as required or assigned, even if they fall outside your typical wheelhouse, with ownership and follow-through.
• Maintain strict confidentiality and handle sensitive employment matters with discretion and integrity.
• Collaborate closely with executive leadership to ensure employment strategies support business growth and scalability.
• Implement proactive controls to reduce litigation risk and strengthen the company's employment compliance framework.
• Partner with People Operations to design and refine onboarding, offboarding, and transition processes that protect company interests.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to manufacturing and field operations on day-to-day employment decisions and risk management.

Requirements

• You hold a JD and are admitted to practice in California.
• You have 10+ years of in-house experience or similar law firm experience providing advice and counsel to startups.
• You have experience advising companies with hourly employees, especially in California manufacturing settings.
• You must be able to work onsite at least 3 days per week: at least 2 days at our Hayward manufacturing site and at least 1 day at our HQ in San Mateo.
• You know how to triage issues and ruthlessly prioritize competing demands in a fast-paced environment.
• You manage multiple projects with competing deadlines, maintaining ownership and a high standard of accuracy and follow-through.
• You thrive in collaborative settings, understanding that building strong relationships across departments is vital to success.
• You're comfortable with ambiguity, eager to problem solve, and take the initiative to drive projects to completion.
• You have a deep understanding of employment law principles as they apply to both domestic and international operations.
• You demonstrate strong judgment and discretion when handling sensitive personnel and regulatory matters.
• You are detail-oriented and able to manage complex documentation with precision and care.
• You communicate effectively, both in writing and verbally, with executive leadership and operational teams.
• You are committed to maintaining compliance with all applicable employment laws and regulations.
• You are willing to act as a hands-on legal operator who engages directly with stakeholders at all levels of the organization.

Nice to have

• Experience with equity compensation administration and related documentation.
• Familiarity with defense and public safety sector compliance requirements.
• Knowledge of robotics, AI, and autonomous systems within a manufacturing context.
• Background in drafting and negotiating commercial contracts for vendors and partners.

Practical notes

• You must be able to work onsite at least 3 days per week: 2 days at the Hayward manufacturing site and 1 day at the San Mateo HQ.
• The position requires U.S. authorization to work and the ability to obtain security clearance-related eligibility for certain duties.
• Relocation assistance may be provided for eligible roles.
• This role reports to the General Counsel and operates at the director level within the legal organization.