HR assistant

Closing date for applications: 2 November 2025

Salary: £27,000 dependent on experience (+bonus +benefits)

Location: The role will be based at our London office, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week

Ready to launch your HR career? Join one of the UK's top publishers in this entry-level role and gain hands-on experience across a wide range of HR activities in a supportive environment.

Hachette UK is a creative powerhouse and the UK's second largest book publishing group. Our mission is to make it easy for everyone to discover new worlds of ideas, learning, entertainment and opportunity. We're made up of 10 autonomous publishing divisions and over 60 imprints with a rich and diverse history and an incredible range of authors. We're also the market leader in e-books and publish a range of bestsellers in audio format, the fastest growing part of our business. It's an exciting time to join our business because the publishing market continues to grow and thrive. The UK remains the largest exporter of physical books in the world and book adaptations for film and TV are the foundation of the UK's creative industries.


What you'll be doing

As human resources (HR) assistant for Hachette UK’s adult trade divisions, you will be responsible for delivering professional and efficient administration support for your business divisions and the wider HR team. You will be the first point of contact for all HR queries assigned by your business divisions. No prior HR experience is needed, we are just keen to find someone who is ready to get stuck in and work hard, and in return you’ll be exposed to a broad range of HR activities and projects in a supportive environment. This is a truly generalist role and a great entry level opportunity for someone that is excited about starting their career in HR.


Responsibilities

HR admin

• Be responsible for processing the monthly payroll including new starters, movers, leavers, family leave and other contractual changes within payroll deadlines and to an exceptional degree of accuracy
• Produce all people related paperwork (e.g. contracts, references, staff contractual change letters, family leave, healthcare paperwork etc.) to an exceptional degree of accuracy
• Keep trackers up to date and ensure all paperwork is returned and filed securely in line with GDPR
• Continually ensure that our processes are up to date, are efficient and streamlined

Systems admin

• Process all system and hierarchy changes on all HR systems ensuring a high degree of accuracy
• Be responsible for the maintenance of Smart Clinic (Occupational Health provider) and display screen equipment (DSE) assessments
• Generate reports from HR database as and when required

Company support

• Deliver the HR induction alongside the other HR assistant
• Build positive relationships and work closely with our payroll team and wider business contacts
• Be prepared to support on interviewing for junior level roles

Employee relations

• Proactively supporting the HR team with sickness management and occupational health referrals
• Be responsible for visas and any other right to work documents for new starters
• Where required, provide note-taker support for employee relations meetings
• Be familiar with and adhere to all relevant Hachette UK policies and procedures at all times

Wider HR team support

• Supporting members of the HR team with company queries and tasks
• Supporting the diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) manager with company events and new initiatives
• Supporting the recruitment team with managing candidate applications through our applicant tracking system
• Support the head of reward with benefits administration
• Supporting the learning & development team with administration
• Any other duties as reasonably required in line with skills, knowledge, and experience to contribute to Hachette UK’s wider success

These are the main requirements of the role and is not an exhaustive list of duties. It is intended to reflect the nature, range, and context of the work, which will change over time.


Who we are looking for

• Excellent attention to detail with accurate and exacting standards
• Takes pride in providing a first-class customer service
• Approachable, efficient and helpful
• Strong organisational skills
• Ability to multitask and maintain composure in a demanding environment
• Ability to prioritise and handle ever changing and conflicting workload priorities
• The ability to respond in a timely and professional manner
• The ability to build trusted and positive relationships with staff at all levels
• Outstanding communication skills including the ability to communicate in a logical way, to listen and to clearly present information to others
• Excellent written skills, whether you’re drafting content yourself or proofreading someone else’s work, with a sharp eye for detail when it comes to spelling, punctuation, and grammar
• Strong numerical skills
• Proactive and process driven
• Resilient with a desire to uphold company policies and procedures
• Team player with a positive, ‘can do’ attitude
• No prior HR admin experience necessary, however administrative skills would be a bonus
• A real interest in developing a future within HR

What we offer

Our staff are our greatest asset, and our benefits reflect this:

• 28 annual leave days per year, increases to 29 days after 2 years' service and goes up to 30 days after 5 years' (+ bank holidays)
• Private medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Generous pension schemes
• Rent deposit loans
• 2 community days per year
• Summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months)
• Retail discounts through Hachette rewards
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Eye care vouchers
• Wide-ranging training library
• Development programmes (including mentoring)
• Up to 70% off book purchases
• A charity bookshelf
• 12 Staff-led employee networks that are voluntary, including AgeWise, Gender Balance, Thrive, Pride, All Together, Wellbeing and religious networks
• Season ticket loans
• And much more!

Our commitment

The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews and undertaking junior roles. For more information visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

Hachette employs people on the basis of their abilities. We aim to attract and develop talent from a base as broad as the world of readers we want to reach, with a wide and representative range of age, faith, disability, race, gender, sexuality and socio-economic, regional and cultural backgrounds. If you are shortlisted and need us to make any adjustments to help you attend for interview, please let us know.

Please state in your application that you found this opportunity through Creative Access.