Rewards Review and Access to Products for Healthcare: Legal and fiscal advisor

Location: Any MSF office*

Contract: Fixed term at 100%

Duration: 12 months (secondment from a permanent role in another MSF entity can be considered)

Starting date: 1 January 2024 (or as soon as possible after then)

Deadline to apply: 18 January 2024

*By default, the successful candidate will be offered a contract in the MSF office of their country of residence at the time of application.

I. MSF INTERNATIONAL

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international, independent, medical humanitarian organisation that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, healthcare exclusion and natural disasters. MSF offers assistance to people based only on need and irrespective of race, religion, gender or political affiliation.

MSF International is the legal entity that binds MSF’s 24 sections, 25 associations and other offices together. Registered in Switzerland, MSF International provides coordination, information and support to the MSF Movement, as well as implements international projects and initiatives as requested.

II. POSITION BACKGROUND

This position will support 2 on-going projects: the Rewards Review and the Access to Products for Healthcare. The time distribution will be at 70% for the Rewards Review and at 30% for the Access to Products for Healthcare.

A- The Rewards Review (RR)

MSF is currently developing and implementing new rewards policies and tools to address longstanding problems identified and explored through an extensive process known as the Rewards Review. These new policies and tools are grouped into three Rewards Review deliverables (Minimum Standards for Pay and Benefits; a model for new Staff Groups; and a Global Grading Framework), each of which is made up of several workstreams. The implementation of these new policies and tools will require changes in existing HR practices and support to structures and governance; it will be implemented over a number of years. Extensive stakeholder engagement and change management activities, essential for the successful implementation, are on-going.

The changes brought about through the Rewards Review will create a rewards system that provides more equity, transparency and consistency. This will better enable MSF to nurture an increasingly diverse workforce with the right balance of skills for today’s operational needs and tomorrow’s humanitarian challenges.

MSF’s leadership (the Full ExCom) have prioritised the Rewards Review as the most important transformational project currently underway. In October 2023, the Full ExCom validated an implementation roadmap that will enable the organization to bring about the agreed changes in the coming years. The roadmap covers different workstreams. Each workstream includes a design & feasibility phase followed by preparation and roll-out of the changes.

The legal and fiscal advisor will be pivotal in supporting the design and feasibility phase of key workstreams, with a specific (though not exclusive) focus on changes that will impact current Internationally Mobile Staff.

B- The Access to Product Healthcare (APH)

Access to Products for Healthcare (APH) is critical to MSF’s Social Mission. MSF has been engaged in a wide variety of ways to improve APH in the past decades. In 2023, the MSF International Board approved the set-up of a new organisational model for APH work in MSF.

The model implies the set-up of a new structure to lead the implementation of APH objectives responding to the movement’s agreed APH problems we are confronted to in the field. Given the focus of the new APH structure, the current AC workforce will be impacted and such impact need to be addressed and mitigated.

III. PLACE IN THE ORGANISATION

A- For the RR:

The legal and fiscal advisor is part of the International HR team of MSF International, and of the International Legal Department.

Within the International HR team, they report to the Rewards Review Senior Partner and work closely with the leads of each of the Rewards Review deliverables and the Rewards Review Project Management Lead.

Within the International Legal Department, they report functionally to the Manager of Unit 4 (focused on Administrative and Legal Support of Missions) and the Manager of Unit 3 (focused on HR and Duty of Care).

They will also work closely with compensation and benefits, administrative and legal functions in the different entities impacted by the changes, especially the sections that are issuing contracts for Internationally Mobile Staff. They will also work in partnership with the International Administration and the Global Rewards platforms.

B- For the APH:

The legal and fiscal advisor reports to the Organisational Model Change Implementation Executive Committee (OMC) and administratively to the OMC Executive.

Within the International Legal Department, they report functionally to the Manager of Unit 3 (focused on HR and Duty of Care).

IV. OBJECTIVES OF THE POSITION

A- For the RR:

The purpose of the legal and fiscal advisor position is to contribute to the development and implementation of Rewards Review workstreams by i. providing analysis on feasibility of changes, ii. including defining context-appropriate solutions and iii. contributing to proposals for the implementation of changes.

The main focus of the position will be on the workstreams related with Relocated and Mobile packages and contracts, for which the critical phase of design and feasibility is foreseen to be completed during the third and fourth quarters of 2024.

B- For the APH:

The purpose of this position is to provide legal coordination, advice and support to the OMC and relevant MSF entities with staffing approaches and individual cases management related to the transition from the AC to the new APH Structure.

V. MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

A- For the RR:

– RELOCATED PACKAGES and CONTRACTS

Analyze legal, administrative and fiscal feasibility of proposed changes for staff who relocate for positions, including contracting in their home section and remuneration calculated on the host country salary grids, taking into account potential impact on social security and benefits provision.

• In-depth analysis with contracting sections (including ICO) and proposal for solutions to enable management of the above.
• Analysis of fiscal impact & risks for MSF and for individuals of the proposed changes and draft recommendations for IDRH to mitigate risks.
• Support the Global Rewards Platform and IDRH in apprehending the legal and tax consequences of strategies to manage currency fluctuations and indexations (in coordination with Compensation & Benefits experts).
• Identify contexts where local contracting in the host country might be a legal obligation and propose recommendations on how to approach these situations.

– MOBILE PACKAGES and CONTRACTS

• Support IHR and entities on the analysis of legalities related to the introduction of a single grid for all mobile staff (local minimum wages, annual indexations)
• Provide recommendations to entities and contracting sections regarding the legal implementation of global policies (single grid, potentially revised home child allowance etc.) in local contexts.
• Analyze fiscal impact of changes made to the packages (such as integration of per diem into the salary).

– OTHER WORKSTREAMS

• Contribute to the development of a policy for fixed mandates (time limited contracts for certain senior positions): analyze local feasibility and examine potential liabilities for MSF.
• From time to time: support working groups working on workstreams such as Working Hours, Severance Pay etc.

– OTHERS

• Identify if other technical support is needed and explore how this can best be provided (either within ILD or from external providers) and manage the provision of this.
• From time to time, present to the IDRH and other platforms the result of these analyses and proposals.

C- For the APH:

• Oversee legal compliance: advise the OMC on the legal implications of the global approach to recruitment and transition model impacting AC staff, and in particular identify risks and propose mitigation measures in relation to the implementation of the global approach, including by: proposing ways of reducing the risk of differential treatment of staff in relation to diverse legal national requirements; supporting HR teams and the OMC in developing legal strategies that are globally consistent yet locally adaptable;
• Local legal expertise coordination: coordinate local legal expertise in various countries and ensure alignment in the implementation of the global approach; engage with external legal advisors for specialized advice and guidance.
• Procedure Coordination: coordinate legal procedures and timings to ensure efficient and effective implementation of the global approach;
• Maintain an overview of activities planned and in progress and their timelines;
• Participate to OMC and other Executive Platforms meetings as requested.

Requiremnets

• Imperative: legal training and experience related to international mobility (tax and labor law).
• Understanding of MSF operational contexts and HR challenges.
• Solution-oriented and ability to translate complex legal language into operational words; and strong ability to provide user-friendly tools and instruments.
• Strong networking skills and ability to identify and build on shared priorities amongst stakeholders with different perspectives.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.

At MSF, we are committed to an inclusive culture that encourages and supports the diverse voices of our employees. We welcome applications from individuals of all genders, ages, sexual orientations, nationalities, races, religions, beliefs, ability status, and all other diversity characteristics.