Ethics Advisor, Case Management (Retainer), Multiple positions
Remote | Home Based - May require travel
- Organization: UNOPS - United Nations Office for Project Services
- Location: Remote | Home Based - May require travel
- Grade: Mid level - IICA-3, International Individual Contractors Agreement
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Occupational Groups:
- Social Affairs
- Refugee rights and well-being
- Protection Officer (Refugee)
- Project and Programme Management
- Ombudsman and Ethics
- Documentation and Information Management
- Closing Date: 2025-09-30
Functional Responsibilities
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Conduct preliminary (prima facie) reviews of whistleblower protection against retaliation cases, including speaking with reporters and other relevant parties and examining submitted documentation, requiring in-depth understanding of the UNOPS regulations, rules and policies as well as the international administrative legal framework and jurisprudence.
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Recommend and draft requests for measures to safeguard reporters’ interests while the review is ongoing.
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Where the preliminary review results in a determination of no prima facie retaliation, draft a formal memorandum to the reporter outlining the legal reasoning and analysis for the determination.
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Where the preliminary review results in a determination of prima facie retaliation, draft a formal memorandum to the Internal Audit and Investigations Group (IAIG), mandated to undertake the investigation into the retaliation allegation, detailing the allegations and conclusions.
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Upon receipt of the investigation report, make an independent review of the report and related to documentation, make a final determination of the case, and inform the reporter of the outcome.
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Draft recommendations on managerial intervention or corrective measures, where appropriate.
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Ensure and promote consistent ethical advice and compliance with ethics-related policies, especially the ones related to whistleblowing mechanisms and retaliation through the provision of advisory on sensitive cases.
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Consult and liaise with stakeholders, including Senior stakeholders as applicable, during the implementation phase of the revised whistleblower mechanism.
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Contribute to improving standard operating procedures and internal policies related to handling of protection against retaliation requests.
Education/Experience/Language requirements
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Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent degree) in a relevant field such as law, criminology, social sciences, public administration, human resources, investigations, corporate ethics or related field is required.
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A combination of a Bachelor’s degree with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above.
Experience
- Minimum 7 years of experience in organizational ethics, OR law is required, including in either corporate compliance, personnel misconduct, investigations, employee relations or other ethics-related areas
- Experience with legal or ethics-related document drafting and analysis is required
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Fluency in English is required.
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Working-level knowledge of French or Spanish would be an asset.
Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.