Senior Legal Counsel (Employment)

Vast is seeking a Senior Legal Counsel, reporting to the General Counsel, to serve as the primary legal advisor to the People Team and all business units on a full range of employment law matters. In this role you will lead employment-law strategy and compliance at Vast, advising leaders on workplace policies, managing risk, and enabling scalable, legally sound people operations as we design and build next-generation human-rated space stations.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location. 

Responsibilities: 

Advice & Counseling

• Serve as the primary legal advisor to the People Team and all business units on the full range of employment law matters, CA wage and hour, PAGA, hiring, performance management, accommodations (ADA/ADAAA), leaves of absence (FMLA/state equivalents), compensation and pay equity, contingent workforce (e.g., staffing companies; temp/seasonal employees), and terminations.
• Provide real-time, practical, and business-oriented counsel on employee relations issues — escalations, disciplinary actions, PIPs, workplace complaints, and sensitive personnel situations.
• Advise on multi-state employment law compliance, keeping guidance current as laws change, and AI-use implications in the workplace.
• Provide guidance and counsel to employment matters pertaining to Vast global entities. 

Policies, Handbooks & Compliance

• Partner with the People team to draft, review, revise, and maintain employment policies and employee handbooks to ensure legal compliance, internal consistency, and alignment with company culture.
• Monitor and translate new and evolving federal, state, and local employment legislation, regulations, and agency guidance into actionable policy updates and business recommendations.
• Assist with the annual policy review cycle and partner with HRBPs on rollout and employee communications.

Workplace Investigations Support

• Work alongside the company's in-house investigator on workplace investigations.
• Advise on investigation outcomes, corrective actions, and any resulting legal exposure.
• Help develop and refine investigation protocols, templates, and training materials.

Training & Proactive Risk Mitigation

• Develop training with People team members for managers and business leaders on topics such as anti-harassment, anti-discrimination, wage and hour, accommodations, and lawful management practices.
• Identify systemic employment risk trends and proactively recommend process, policy, or practice changes to reduce exposure.

Talent Acquisition & Hiring Support

• Partner with the Talent Acquisition team on offer letters, employment agreements, independent contractor classifications, pre-employment screening compliance (background checks, ban-the-box), non-compete/non-solicit enforceability, and onboarding documentation.
• Review and update template employment agreements, offer letter forms, and related hiring documents on a regular cadence.

Minimum Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in a legal role at a private company or law firm.
• Subject matter expertise in employment law at a start-up technology or high growth organization.
• JD with admission to practice law in a state bar in good standing and able to practice in-house in California.
• Familiarity with contingent workforce (e.g. staffing companies; temp/seasonal employees).
• Strong problem-solving experience and skills.
• Strong verbal and writing skills. 
• Process-oriented and team player.
• Good judgment and the ability to balance risk and productivity in a business environment with competing priorities.
• Ability to work independently or collaboratively in a fast-pace environment. 

Preferred Skills & Experience:

• Knowledge of computer applications and the ability to easily navigate through different computer software programs.
• Experience leveraging AI technology to improve work efficiency.
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment.
• Ability to make independent judgments with limited information.
• Communication skills for relaying data (verbally and in-writing) between other employees, vendors, and customers.

Additional Requirements:

• Ability to travel up to 15% of the time.
• Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones.
• Specific certifications, as appropriate.