Eric Herppich appointed AVP for Labor and Employee Relations

The university has selected Eric Herppich to fill the position of Assistant Vice President of Labor and Employee Relations. Having served as OU’s Director of Compensation and Benefits since April 2018, he began his role overseeing the university’s Department of Labor and Employee Relations on March 21.

Over the last four years, Eric has, among other responsibilities, provided counsel and guidance on compensation and benefits best practices, ensured legislative and contractual compliance, maintained OU’s market competitiveness, and heightened employee awareness of benefit options.

Importantly, he has utilized a cooperative, creative, and effective work ethic while managing both individual and collaborative projects with a best practices framework.

"I am very excited, really overjoyed by this appointment,” said Joi Cunningham, Vice President for Human Resources. “Eric has a wealth of experience and I believe he is absolutely the right person to lead this department that oversees both faculty and staff affairs."

Responsibilities of the AVP for Labor and Employee Relations include but are not limited to:

• developing and implementing strategies to ensure labor agreement compliance and collaborative relationships with union leadership;

• serving on contract negotiation teams and developing strategies for successful negotiation processes;

• acting as the grievance officer and primarily liaison to the university’s unions;

• providing guidance on and creating action plans for performance and personnel issues; and

• developing and implementing programs that foster inclusive excellence and support diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

Herppich said he is pleased to have this opportunity to leverage his knowledge of the organizational, operational, budgetary, and service needs of a complex public employer in his new role.

“I'm looking forward to continuing to work with faculty and staff across campus to position Oakland University as an employer that prioritizes and empowers employees in service to its mission, vision and values,” he said.