Principal Global Employment Counsel

About Us Temporal is an open source programming model that can simplify code, make applications more reliable, and help developers focus on the important things like delivering features faster. We are on a mission to be the reliable foundation of every developer’s toolbox, and are building the team that will make that happen. Our values guide us —they are present in how we show up, make decisions, and work together to make an impact. We’re curious, driven, collaborative, genuine and humble. Temporal is growing and we are looking for those who share our values, challenge 'standard' thinking, and want to influence our future. If you have a passion for improving the developer experience, building world-class open-source software and communities, and want to be a part of our amazing team, we'd love to hear from you! Summary Temporal is hiring a Principal Global Employment Counsel to help shape and scale our employment legal function as we grow. This is a senior individual contributor role reporting to the General Counsel, partnering closely with the People team and cross-functional leaders to balance compliance and risk with the needs of a rapidly scaling business. We’re looking for deep U.S. employment law expertise plus experience advising on global employment matters (especially UK/EU, Canada, and APAC, including Singapore and India). What You’ll Do Serve as Temporal’s go-to employment lawyer across the full employee lifecycle: hiring, onboarding, performance management, compensation, accommodations, investigations, employee relations, mobility/immigration, and separations, with a strong focus on U.S. federal and multi-state requirements. Provide risk-calibrated, practical guidance that enables the business while building durable compliance. Lead legal strategy for key employment programs; partner with the People team to develop and maintain supporting policies, templates, and playbooks, and to build scalable processes for employee relations, investigations, and exits. Support Temporal’s international expansion by advising on employment law matters across jurisdictions, coordinating with local counsel, and working cross-functionally to help stand up and operationalize new entities (e.g., UK, Singapore, India, Canada, Germany, and Australia). Manage and optimize EOR relationships globally, including supporting transitions from EOR arrangements to local entities as Temporal’s international footprint matures. Provide employment-related guidance on compensation matters, including support for executive compensation workstreams as needed. What You’ll Bring JD and active membership in good standing with at least one U.S. state bar. 10+ years of experience (including meaningful in-house experience) advising on U.S. and global employment matters across jurisdictions. Demonstrated ability to build scalable policy and process foundations while moving quickly and exercising excellent judgment. Track record managing sensitive, complex ER matters with discretion and strong stakeholder management. Clear, concise communicator who can translate legal risk into actionable guidance for non-legal partners. Working knowledge of global privacy laws as they relate to employee data. Genuine curiosity about technology and a willingness to embrace AI and other tools to work more efficiently and improve legal operations. Compensation The estimated pay range for this role is $225,000 - $340,000 Additionally, this role is eligible to participate in Temporal’s equity plan. Compensation ranges reflect salary and commission compensation (when applicable) across several geographic markets. Employment offers carefully consider multiple factors, including prior experience, knowledge, expertise, skillset, market location, and job level assessed during the interview process. Employee benefits and perks below are for full-time employees, part-time or temporary positions are excluded. U.S. Benefits Unlimited PTO, 12 Holidays + 2 Floating ... (truncated, view full listing at source)