Legal Counsel - Employment (APAC & MEA)

About Payoneer Founded in 2005, Payoneer is the global financial platform that removes friction from doing business across borders, with a mission to connect the world’s underserved businesses to a rising global economy. We’re a community with over 2,500 colleagues all over the world, working to serve customers, and partners in over 190 countries and territories. By taking the complexity out of the financial workflows–including everything from global payments and compliance to multi-currency and workforce management, to providing working capital and business intelligence–we give businesses the tools they need to work efficiently worldwide and grow with confidence. Our Growing WFM Ecosystem This role sits at the heart of a rapidly expanding global workforce management (WFM) business, shaped by three significant transactions: • Skuad (acquired August 2024, now rebranded as Payoneer Workforce Management): Skuad's expertise helps businesses in over 160 countries navigate complex challenges, including international payroll, remote onboarding, and regulatory compliance. This acquisition reinforced Payoneer's mission and solidified its role as a trusted partner for global WFM. • Boundless (acquired January 2026): An Ireland-based Employer of Record (EOR) platform that helps companies seamlessly and compliantly employ people around the world. The acquisition deepens Payoneer's European presence and strengthens its end-to-end EOR capabilities globally — bringing complementary infrastructure and deep local expertise to the WFM business. Together, these transactions position Payoneer WFM as one of the most comprehensive global employment and financial infrastructure platforms in the market — and this role will contribute directly to that scale. Role Summary: To achieve our mission of enabling remote employment globally, we need world-class legal capability embedded in the heart of our WFM business. We are seeking a Legal Counsel – Employment (APAC) to provide comprehensive, practical legal guidance across employment and labour matters for Payoneer WFM entities in India and across the APAC region. The Legal Counsel – Employment (APAC) will report to the Senior Legal Counsel – Employment (APAC & MEA) and will be a critical contributor to the labour and employment charter for our EoR and AoR employee populations across the APAC portfolio. This is a high-impact role in a fast-moving environment - you will be advising on complex employment matters, supporting business expansion, and helping build scalable legal infrastructure for a growing platform. What You'll Do • Provide high-quality, practical employment law advice across the full employee lifecycle in multiple APAC and MEA Jurisdictions, including hiring, employment terms, statutory benefits, disciplinary processes, performance actions, separations, and workforce restructuring. • Advise on and manage employee relations matters - including complex terminations, mutual separations, and dispute resolution - ensuring risk-aligned outcomes for EoR clients.. • Draft, review, and refine employment documentation including employment agreements, separation and mutual termination letters, transfer and relocation documents, full and final settlement letters, and statutory HR policies. • Ensure compliance with labour laws across all relevant jurisdictions. • Serve as POSH Internal Committee (IC) member or advisor - ensuring all compliance obligations under the India Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act are met, and personally managing or supporting inquiry proceedings as required in line with the law. • Assist in developing and implementing employment, HR, compensation, and workforce-structuring policies aligned to local laws and business needs - including drafting and updating employee handbooks and statutory policies across multiple jurisdictions. • Stay ahead of legislative and regulatory developments across central and state employment laws and translate updates into actionable, business-friendly guidance for internal stakeholders and clients. • Collaborate closely with the wider Legal, HR Ops, Payroll, Finance, Sales, and GTM teams to deliver commercially aligned legal solutions across all relevant jurisdictions. • Support individual and large-scale workforce transitions, reorganisations, and restructuring projects, ensuring legal compliance and robust documentation throughout. • Conduct legal research and prepare clear analysis on employment and labour law issues as required. • Deliver training and guidance to internal teams and clients on employment law compliance, risk mitigation, and best practices. Who You Are • You hold a Bachelor's degree in Law (LLB); a Master's degree or LLM is an added advantage. • You bring 2–5 years of hands-on experience in Indian employment and labour law, either from a reputable law firm or an in-house legal function. Exposure to other APAC jurisdictions' employment laws is a significant advantage. • You understand the legal nuances of hiring, employee lifecycle management, workforce transitions, and separations in India and other APAC and MEA jurisdictions. • Prior experience working in or advising an Employer of Record (EoR) or global workforce management platform is a significant benefit. • You have deep, practical knowledge of Indian labour laws and regulations — including the four Labour Codes (Code on Wages, Industrial Relations Code, Code on Social Security, and the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code), POSH, and applicable state-level rules. • You have strong drafting skills and are experienced in preparing and reviewing employment agreements, HR policies, separation documentation, and related employment artefacts. • You possess excellent analytical, research, and problem-solving abilities, with the ability to translate legal requirements into practical, business-aligned guidance. • You communicate legal concepts clearly and confidently, partnering effectivel