HR Officer

About our Client - Carnistore

Founded in 2018 in the UAE, CarniStore is a leading online butchery and smokehouse redefining how quality meat is sourced, distributed, and experienced nationwide. Since its inception, the homegrown brand has bridged traditional craft, rooted in a nose-to-tail philosophy, with a consumer-centric approach and a commitment to digitizing the world of butchery across an expanded protein portfolio spanning meat, seafood, poultry, and smoked specialties. Supported by rigorous supply chains, uncompromising standards, and service excellence, CarniStore is trusted by both households and leading hospitality operators, while continuing to elevate the region’s expectations around quality, transparency, and culinary innovation.

Purpose of the Role

The HR Officer is the company's hands-on HR operations lead, owning the full employee visa and PRO lifecycle, leave administration, HR documentation, and day-to-day HR administration. The role ensures CarniStore remains fully compliant with UAE labour and immigration requirements while giving employees a responsive, accurate, and professional HR service. As the HR function is built out, the role will take on progressively greater ownership of HR policy, employee relations and people projects, with a clear development path within the HR department.

Key Responsibilities

1. PRO, Visa & Immigration

• Manage the end-to-end employee visa lifecycle through the relevant online government platforms (MOHRE, GDRFA Dubai / ICP) and authorised service centres, including work permits, entry permits, change of status, medical fitness, Emirates ID, residence visa issuance and renewal
• Process visa cancellations and employee transfers accurately and on time, in coordination with exiting or joining employees and their previous or new employers
• Prepare, submit, and track MOHRE employment contracts, offer letters, and contract amendments in line with UAE Labour Law requirements
• Maintain a live expiry register for all employee documents (passports, residence visas, Emirates IDs, work permits, medical insurance) and act ahead of deadlines to avoid fines, penalties, or lapses
• Support the renewal and maintenance of company-level immigration and labour records, in coordination with the Business Services Manager
• Act as the company’s point of contact with government departments, typing and service centres, and external PRO agents where used
• Stay up to date with changes to UAE labour and immigration regulations and procedures, and flag their impact to management

2. Leave & Attendance Management

• Administer all employee leave in line with UAE Labour Law and company policy, including annual, sick, maternity, parental, bereavement, study, and unpaid leave
• Maintain accurate leave balances and accruals for all employees, and reconcile them monthly
• Prepare monthly leave and attendance inputs for payroll, and coordinate with Finance on accuracy and timeliness
• Prepare leave settlement and end-of-service benefit calculations for Finance review

3. HR Documentation & Employee Records

• Prepare salary certificates, salary transfer letters, NOCs, employment and experience letters, and embassy letters promptly and accurately
• Maintain complete, confidential, and audit-ready  digital personnel files for all employees
• Draft standard HR correspondence and letters using approved templates, escalating non-standard cases to management
• Ensure all HR records are version-controlled, securely stored, and handled with strict confidentiality

4. HR Administration & Operations

• Coordinate onboarding, including joining formalities and  documentations
• Coordinate offboarding, including resignation and termination paperwork, clearance, exit formalities, final settlement inputs, and visa cancellation
• Manage employee medical insurance additions, deletions, and renewals with the insurance provider.
• Take part in medical insurance renewal negotiations with insurers and brokers
• Provide payroll inputs to Finance for joiners, leavers, salary changes, deductions, and leave, and support WPS-related requirements
• Act as the first point of contact for employee HR queries across all business units
• Handle general HR administration tasks as required

5. HR Systems (HRIS)

• Use and populate the company’s Odoo HR module, keeping all employee records, documents, and data complete and accurate
• Manage leave requests, balances, and approvals through the Odoo Time Off module
• Set up new joiners and deactivate leavers in Odoo
• Train employees and managers on Odoo HR and serve as the first point of contact for system queries
• Liaise with the Odoo partner or internal system owner on issues, enhancements, and further module rollout
• Use Odoo to produce regular HR reports

Critical Requirements

• 4 to 6 years' HR experience, the majority of it in the UAE
• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field
• Hands-on, independent experience handling the full UAE employment visa lifecycle through online government platforms, including new visas, renewals, cancellations, and transfers, without needing step-by-step guidance
• Working knowledge of UAE Labour Law, particularly leave entitlements, employment contracts, and end-of-service gratuity
• Managing employee medical insurance (additions, deletions, renewals), with exposure to renewal negotiations alongside Finance
• Experience administering employee leave, including balances, accruals, and monthly payroll inputs
• Preparing HR documentation, including salary certificates, NOCs, employment letters, and MOHRE contracts
• Hands-on HRIS experience, including vendor communication, system integration, onboarding employees onto the platform, and end-user training

Important Requirements

• Coordinating payroll inputs and WPS requirements with Finance, including end-of-service calculations
• End-to-end onboarding and offboarding coordination, including visa cancellation and final settlement inputs
• Strong Excel skills for trackers, reconciliations, and HR reporting

Nice to Have

• Hands-on experience with the Odoo HR module
• Exposure to recruitment coordination and performance review administration
• Experience in an SME or scale-up environment, helping build HR processes from the ground up

Success Measures (First 12 Months)

• Zero visa, permit, or document-related fines or lapses, with all employee document expiry dates tracked and renewed on time
• All visa issuances, renewals, cancellations and transfers completed within government timelines
• Accurate leave balances for all employees, reconciled monthly with payroll
• Salary certificates and standard HR letters issued within one working day of request
• Complete and audit-ready personnel file in place for every employee
• Active contribution to the rollout of the HR policy handbook