Leave of Absence Specialist

HealthPartners; BLOOMINGTON (MN); Remote; USD 52,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

HealthPartners seeks a Leave of Absence Specialist to serve as a liaison between colleagues, leaders, and a leave claims administrator, administering LOA claims and advising employees on eligibility, coverage, and leave programs.

This role delivers professional, high-quality customer service through phone, email, tickets, and online chat, while supporting FMLA, ADA, state leaves, disability plans, and COBRA when needed.

Qualifications

• Experience interpreting policies and handling LOA inquiries.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficiency with MS Word and Excel.
• Ability to manage multiple leave types concurrently.
• Maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive information.

Responsibilities

• Provide exceptional customer service and guidance regarding leave policies, procedures, and entitlement.
• Monitor LOA policies across leave types and benefit programs for compliance.
• Act as liaison between third-party Leave of Absence administrator and internal partners.
• Provide routine support for Absence Management programs including FMLA, Short and Long Term Disability, ADA, State Leaves and Workers' Compensation.
• Research and resolve issues by interacting with colleagues, leave claims administrator and internal partners.
• Coordinate benefits and payments under state leave programs and company disability / PTO plans.
• HRIS data entry including leave initiation and timekeeping adjustments.
• Manage benefits and billing during unpaid leaves and COBRA transitions as needed.
• Coordinate return to work with Employee Health and HR teams; LOA involvement as needed.
• Maintain knowledge of state and federal regulations and ensure confidentiality.
• Administer other company time-off programs as assigned.

Skills

Verbal & written communication

Interpersonal skills

Multitask & independent work

MS Word & Excel

Project ownership

Self-starter / career oriented

Education

Associate degree or 2 years experience

Bachelor’s degree in HR or related

Tools

Microsoft Outlook

MS Access

MS Visio

PowerPoint

Excel

Publisher

Job description

HealthPartners is hiring a Leave of Absence Specialist. The Leave of Absence Specialist will function as the liaison between colleagues and leaders and a leave claims administrator to effectively administer LOA claims and advise employees on eligibility, coverage, and other leave matters. This position assists colleagues, leaders and HR partners in answering questions regarding the leave programs. They are responsible for providing professional, high-quality customer service through various communication channels, including phone, email, tickets, and online chat. This position will oversee and may administer leave requests requiring specialized attention, particularly those arising under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), state and local leave laws and paid leave programs, and company sponsored short-term or long-term disability plans.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education, Experience or Equivalent Combination:
  • Associate of Arts degree or 2 years of equivalent experienceor one year experience in human resources or employee benefits administration
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to interpret interpersonal queues
  • Effective interpersonal and customer service skills
  • Ability to multitask and work independently using professional judgment and policy guidelines
  • Strong computer skills, including experience with Microsoft Word and Excel.
  • Ability to take ownership of assigned projects and handle competing priorities
  • Career oriented, creative, self-starter searching for the opportunity to grow within the organization

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education, Experience or Equivalent Combination:
  • Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration or equivalent experience
  • More than two years’ experience in leave of absence administration working with regulatory leaves
  • Experience as an LOA administratoror specialist
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
  • Knowledge of state leave and federal FMLA regulations
  • Knowledge of relevant state regulations, HIPPA and American with Disabilities Act
  • Experience with Microsoft Outlook, Access, Visio, PowerPoint, Excel, Publisher

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

1. Provide exceptional customer service and guidance to employees and leaders regarding leave of absence policies, procedures, and entitlement, ensuring timely and accurate response to inquires.
2. Monitor LOA policies and procedures, coordinating across multiple types of leave and benefit programs for effective application and compliance with company leave pay programs.
3. Act as liaison between third-party administrator for Leave of Absence and internal partners.
4. Provide routine support for all Absence Management programs including FMLA, Short and Long Term Disability, ADA, State Mandated Leaves, and Workers Compensation.
5. Responsible for researching and resolving issues by interacting with colleagues, leave claims administrator and internal partners.
6. Monitor benefits provided by state leave programs and coordinate payment of additional supplemental benefits provided under company sponsored disability and paid time off plans.
7. HRIS data entry including leave initiation, processing applicable paid time off for unpaid leaves in timekeeping system, and return from leave.
8. Manage benefits and billing process when employees are on an unpaid leave of absence and as needed, move benefits to COBRA.
9. Work with Employee Health and local HR teams to coordinate return to work" LOA team's involvement in the interactive process may need to be evaluated and then added here if it becomes part of the role.
10. Maintain knowledge of all state and federal regulations and laws and ensure all information remains confidential.
11. Administers other company time-off programs as assigned in accordance with internal policy and applicable laws.
12. Maintain utmost confidentiality, professionalism, positive attitude and integrity in all customer and colleague interactions.
13. Perform other duties or special projects as directed.

*Job description rankings/percentages are intended to reflect normal averages over an extended period of time, and are subject to daily variances. Quality and efficiency standards should at no time be compromised to meet the average expectations expressed above. Job descriptions are subject to change to accommodate organization or department needs.

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