Employment Counsel

Employment Counsel We believe that the way people interact with their finances will drastically improve in the next few years. We’re dedicated to empowering this transformation by building the tools and experiences that thousands of developers use to create their own products. Plaid powers the tools millions of people rely on to live a healthier financial life. We work with thousands of companies like Venmo, SoFi, several of the Fortune 500, and many of the largest banks to make it easy for people to connect their financial accounts to the apps and services they want to use. Plaid’s network covers 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada, UK and Europe. Founded in 2013, the company is headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York, Washington D.C., London and Amsterdam. The Employment Counsel will join Plaid’s Enterprise Legal Services team – a group of centralized legal subject-matter experts supporting all of Plaid’s functions. We are a lean, highly collaborative team (part of Plaid’s ~28-person legal department) that includes the Employment legal team, along with other practice areas. Our mission is to craft empathetic, forward-looking solutions that empower our stakeholders and drive innovation and competitive differentiation. As the third member of the Employment Legal team, you will help round out our employment law capabilities, working alongside two experienced employment attorneys in a fast-growing fintech company of ~1000 employees worldwide. This small-team environment means you’ll have the chance to make a significant impact and even wear multiple hats, partnering cross-functionally to propel Plaid’s growth while maintaining our inclusive, compliant, and innovative culture. We are seeking a junior to mid-level Employment Counsel (approximately 3–5 years of experience) who will serve as a trusted advisor on employment law matters in the U.S. and in support our global operations. In this role, you will provide balanced, practical advice to our People Team (HR) and business leaders on day-to-day employment issues across the entire employee lifecycle – from hiring and onboarding to performance management and terminations. You will play a key part in designing and implementing scalable policies and processes that enable Plaid to grow compliantly and efficiently. This includes developing policies, templates, and playbooks to educate and empower our teams. You will also help Plaid stay ahead of employment law changes, especially in critical jurisdictions like California and New York, translating legal developments into actionable guidance. As a member of a small legal team, you’ll have broad exposure and the opportunity to contribute to special projects and new legal areas as needs arise. This role is ideal for an ambitious attorney who exhibits a growth mindset and eagerness to learn. We value strong communicators who can empathize with business partners, deliver solutions-oriented advice, and foster trust with colleagues at all levels. Responsibilities - Advise on Day-to-Day Employment Matters: Provide practical counsel to the People Team and managers on a broad spectrum of employment issues across the entire employee lifecycle. - Policy Development and Scaling: Design and implement scalable employment policies, programs, resources, and processes to support Plaid’s growth and evolving legal requirements. - Document Drafting and Management: Draft, review, and maintain global employment documents and templates – for example, offer letters and employment agreements, employee handbooks, codes of conduct, and separation agreements. - Compliance and Risk Mitigation: Monitor developments in employment laws and regulations (federal, state, and local) and translate those legal changes into clear guidance and action plans for the company. Proactively identify areas of risk in employment practices and propose creative, preventative solutions.  - Employee Relations & Dispute Resolution: Collaborate wit ... (truncated, view full listing at source)