HR Generalist & Benefits Specialist

Wheaton College Massachusetts; Norton (MA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

A college in Massachusetts is seeking an HR Generalist & Benefits Specialist to manage health and welfare benefits, coordinate employee leaves, and oversee retirement plans. The role requires strong organizational skills, knowledge of HR systems, and a Bachelor's degree along with relevant professional experience. This position demands effective communication and interpersonal skills, with a focus on employee benefits administration.

Qualifications

• In-depth knowledge in human resources functional areas with emphasis in benefits administration.
• Knowledge of HR/Payroll systems required.
• 2-3 years professional experience in HR or benefits administration.

Responsibilities

• Administer the College’s health and welfare benefits.
• Manage employee leaves and coordinate accommodation requests.
• Oversee retirement plan administration.

Skills

Benefits administration

HR/Payroll systems

Organizational skills

Interpersonal skills

Written communication

Time management

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

MS Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

Ellucian/Banner

Job description

Join to apply for the HR Generalist & Benefits Specialist role at Wheaton College Massachusetts.

Base pay range

$65,000.00/yr - $72,000.00/yr

This range is provided by Wheaton College Massachusetts. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Responsibilities

• Health and Welfare and Ancillary Plans (30%)
  • Administer and support the day-to-day operational aspects of the administration of the College’s health and welfare benefits (medical and dental), programs and services and all ancillary benefits, programs and services including life insurance, long term disability, vision, tuition programs and other voluntary benefits in accordance with applicable federal and state regulations, including ERISA reporting requirements
  • Coordinate, schedule and deliver regular new employee benefits orientations and programs and provide related support for new hire enrollments in benefits and new hire system troubleshooting
  • Coordinate and provide day-to-day assistance with employee benefit programs and services including responding to general employee benefit questions, processing benefit enrollments and changes, processing benefit invoices and payments, generating and processing benefit vendor files and auditing benefits plans and deductions
  • Coordinate and support the annual benefits open enrollment process and all related communications and internal processing. Serve as the primary point of contact for open enrollment questions and system troubleshooting, coordinate communications, processing changes, and coordinating with vendors
  • Coordinate and manage Worker’s Compensation claims processing and related communications with worker’s comp vendor, employees and supervisors. Coordinate annual worker’s compensation audit and all related annual filings. Serve on campus wide Safety Committee
  • Coordinate COBRA program including required notifications, enrollments and billing
  • Coordinate and manage tuition programs including annual communication, processing applications, maintaining export/imports data, liaison to tuition program service providers and annual reporting and invoicing
  • Coordinate with external vendor to process and generate 1095C’s and other required annual filings
  • Assist with the implementation, maintenance and troubleshooting of the College’s benefits administration system (WEX) and related electronic vendor file transmittals
• Leave Administration & Accommodation Requests (25%)
  • Manage and coordinate all employee (staff and faculty) leaves including FMLA, MPFL, STD and LTD
  • Serve as the primary contact to third party insurer on all leave related matters
  • Review and determine eligibility for leaves, communicate with employees and supervisors regarding leave benefits and status
  • Generate and prepare leave related resources including general leave related summaries, leave template letters, FAQs, etc., to support the understanding and communication regarding employee leaves
  • Maintain and track status of leaves and coordinate with third party insurer regarding leaves
  • Work closely with third party insurer and internal Payroll Office to calculate and manage employee leave pay and time off balances
  • Maintain and generate data and dashboards regarding leave usage, costs and relevant analytics
  • Coordinate and manage requests for ADA workplace accommodations. Consult with Director, HR Operations, as necessary
• Retirement Plan and Related Programs (25%)
  • Coordinate the day-to-day aspects of the administration of the College’s 403(b) and 457(b) retirement plans in accordance with ERISA guidelines and fiduciary obligations
  • Monitor and coordinate retirement plan enrollments, loans and withdrawals
  • Serve as liaison to retirement plan service provider (TIAA) and other third-party vendors
  • Develop, plan and coordinate a robust retirement education program
  • Coordinate all annual communications and required notifications related to the retirement plan
  • Coordinate and support external auditor on the audit of the 403b retirement plan, annual required testing and notices and preparation and filing of 5500
  • Provide support as necessary to Director, HR Operations on the maintenance of plan documents, SPDs and administrative needs of the Fiduciary Committee
• Payroll Processing/Data Management and HRIS (10%)
  • Assist with the data entry, processing and scanning of new hires and terminations as well as other general employee payroll related and benefit changes in accordance with the college’s regular biweekly and monthly pay cycles
  • Assist with the data entry and maintenance of other employment and demographic data and other Human Resources data processing including seasonal hires, leave accruals, annual salary adjustments and changes, adjunct faculty processing and other related changes
  • Generate and run standard and ad-hoc reports using WebFocus and other reporting tools
  • In collaboration with others, assist with the oversight and effective use and maintenance of the HR/Payroll system and sensitive employee data and information
  • Assist with the ongoing training and support of staff in the efficient use of the HR/Payroll system
  • Assist in the evaluation and implementation of processes and procedures related to the effective use of the HR/Payroll system
  • Assist with the testing of system upgrades and enhancements
• Health & Wellness Programming and Support (1%)
  • Assist with coordination of employee health and wellness programs that includes health education, wellness newsletter, information sessions, fitness and activity programming and online fitness challenges and events
  • Plan and coordinate Annual Open Enrollment and Benefits Fair

Minimum Qualifications

• In-depth knowledge of and experience in all core human resources functional areas with a particular emphasis in benefits administration
• Knowledge and experience with HR/Payroll systems required. Experience with Ellucian/Banner preferred
• Excellent computer skills and knowledge of MS Suite including Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Strong organizational and time management skills are essential
• Must possess strong interpersonal skills, diplomacy, and tact
• Must communicate effectively in writing and orally
• Must be familiar with current issues and best practices in human resources

Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 2-3 years professional experience in human resource and/or benefits administration, preferably in higher education or equivalent combination of education and experience. Previous experience managing and administering employee benefits programs is required.

Seniority level

• Not Applicable

Employment type

• Full-time

Job function

• Human Resources

Industries

• Higher Education