Jennifer Gonzalez

Senior Human Resources Manager @Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT and CENTA) is a leading innovator, marketer and producer of quality branded products for the pet, lawn and garden supplies markets. • Ownership for all local Human Resource activities including staffing, employee relations, performance management, payroll, benefits, workers compensation administration and training. • Partner with senior leadership in helping supervisory personnel increase their skills in coaching and developing their employees; serve as the main resource to guide supervisory personnel in the fair and equitable treatment of employees. • Provide leadership in solving employee relations incidents; conduct fair and thorough complaint investigations; promote open communications and a positive work environment; ensure that policies and processes are fairly and uniformly applied. • Utilizing Taleo and in compliance with affirmative action guidelines, lead local recruiting activities. • Partner with temporary agencies, when possible, to ensure adequate staff is provided for all positions; manage temporary agency vendor performance to ensure business needs are met. • Build on the delivery of training activities to enhance the skill levels of the workforce and ensure compliance with policies. • Process bi-weekly payroll transactions for designated locations. Partner with business unit finance team on required payroll reporting. • Build on the employee engagement program, including company events, employee involvement and other methods to reward employees. • Ensure legal compliance with various governmental laws and regulations covering Affirmative Action/EEO, OSHA, DOT, wage & hour, staffing, workers compensation and harassment prevention. •Manage worker’s compensation claims & issues; mitigate safety risks affecting employees; maintain OSHA log and claims files. • Represent the company in unemployment matters, including responding to correspondence and attending hearings as needed.