Head of People & Culture

The Organisation

The New South Wales Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) is the registered union for all nurses, midwives, and assistants in nursing (carers) and midwifery in NSW. Representing over 80,000 members across public, private, aged care and primary health settings, the NSWNMA protects the industrial interests of its members while advocating for the community in building a world-class, well-funded, integrated health system.

The NSWNMA also plays a key role in professional, educational, and industrial advocacy in state, national, and international forums, and is affiliated with Unions NSW and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU).

Benefits & Culture

• Report to the Chief Operating Officer and be part of the Senior Leadership Team
• Respectful, safe culture embracing collectivism, advocacy, innovation, integrity & courage
• Hybrid work model – work from home and Waterloo, Sydney office
• Five weeks annual leave plus monthly RDOs
• Additional 1% superannuation contribution and gifted Christmas leave

The Role

As Head of People & Culture, you will lead strategic people and culture initiatives that underpin NSWNMA’s ambitious transformation journey. This role is central to building an engaged, resilient, and high-performing workforce that can deliver on the Association’s objectives.

You will guide a capable team across the full employee lifecycle — from recruitment, onboarding, learning and development, and performance management to employee relations, WHS, wellbeing, and payroll oversight. A strong focus will be on organisational culture transformation, fostering collaboration, and building leadership capability across the Association.
Working in a complex, unionised environment, you will:

• Drive organisational transformation and cultural change aligned to NSWNMA’s values
• Develop people and culture policies, processes, and systems that meet best practice and compliance requirements
• Partner with leaders to navigate complex employee relations matters and high-level stakeholder engagement
• Lead with empathy, resilience, and confidence in high-pressure situations
• Ensure the Association’s workforce is equipped for the future through strategic workforce planning

Skills Required

You are an experienced people leader with a track record of successfully delivering organisational transformation in complex environments. You combine strategic thinking with the ability to remain calm, pragmatic, and solutions-focused when navigating challenges.

Your background may include the union movement, not-for-profit, or public sector, or organisations with strong industrial relations contexts. You understand how to work effectively with unions, are confident managing subject matter experts, and can maintain credibility and trust across senior stakeholders.

Alongside relevant tertiary qualifications, you bring:

• Proven leadership in people and culture, including managing senior teams
• Significant organisational transformation and change management experience
• Strength in employee relations, industrial relations, and legislative compliance (Fair Work, Safe Work, gender equality)
• Experience fostering diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing initiatives
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills and the ability to influence at executive level

If you are a strategic, values-driven people leader committed to building thriving, fair workplaces, please submit your cover letter addressing the skills required and your resume quoting ref #1345062. For a confidential discussion, contact Hayley Martin on 02 8243 0570.

Please note there is no formal closing date for this role, if you are interested, we would encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

NGO Recruitment values equitable recruitment practices and is committed to representing candidates reflective of the diverse organisations and communities we work with. We welcome and encourage applications from all backgrounds, ages, and identities, and are happy to adjust our recruitment process to support accessibility needs. If you are interested in this position and have most of the skills or experience we are looking for, please go ahead and apply.