Senior Benefits and Leave Specialist

NewVista Behavioral Health; Cincinnati (OH); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plan options

PTO & holidays

401(k) with company contrib

Tuition reimbursement

Job summary

NewVista Behavioral Health in Cincinnati, OH is seeking a Senior Benefits and Leave Specialist to administer employee benefits and manage FMLA, LOA, and accommodation processes. This role serves as a primary resource for employees and managers regarding benefits and compliance.

You will maintain confidential records, coordinate with benefit carriers and internal partners, and ensure timely leave administration in line with federal, state, and local requirements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in HR or related field required.
• 3+ years of HR experience with hands-on benefits, workers’ compensation, and leave administration.
• Proficiency with HRIS, payroll interfaces, and spreadsheets.

Responsibilities

• Administer employee benefit programs (medical, dental, vision, life, disability, retirement, wellness).
• Support new-hire enrollment, annual open enrollment, and life event changes.
• Review enrollments and carrier files for accuracy; resolve eligibility and billing issues.
• Reconcile benefit invoices and payroll deductions with Payroll/Finance.
• Respond to benefit questions with confidentiality and clarity.
• Maintain benefit plan documentation, notices, audits, and vendor relations.
• Manage FMLA and leave requests from notice to return-to-work, including certifications.
• Coordinate state/local leaves, workers’ comp, and disability benefits.
• Track leave timelines, balances, and return-to-work requirements.
• Communicate with employees, managers, payroll, carriers, and third parties for timely leave administration.
• Maintain confidential medical information and contact with on-leave employees.
• Support ADA interactive process and accommodation assessments.
• Collaborate with HR/ops to implement accommodations and monitor effectiveness.
• Identify and guidance on leave/accommodation requests promptly.
• Maintain complete, accurate, confidential records in designated systems.
• Monitor changes in requirements and update procedures, forms, communications, and training.
• Prepare reports and identify trends in benefits participation, leave usage, and service levels.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.
• Administer workers’ compensation claims from incident to closure and coordinate with injured employees, providers, and carriers.
• Review workplace injury/illness reports and monitor claim status and return-to-work plans.

Skills

HR experience

FMLA knowledge

Leave administration

Benefits administration

Privacy & confidentiality

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR or related field

Tools

HRIS systems

Payroll interfaces

Spreadsheets

Job description

The Senior Benefits and Leave Specialist administers employee benefit programs and manages requests for leave and workplace accommodations. This position serves as a primary resource for employees and managers regarding benefits, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), other leaves of absence (LOA), Workers Compensation and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) interactive process. The role maintains accurate and confidential records, coordinates with benefit carriers and internal partners, and supports consistent administration in accordance with organizational policies and applicable federal, state, and local requirements.

Job Duties

• Administer employee benefit programs, including medical, dental, vision, life, disability, retirement, wellness, and related offerings.
• Support new-hire enrollment, annual open enrollment, qualifying life event changes, benefit terminations, and employee communications.
• Review benefit enrollments and carrier files for accuracy; research and resolve eligibility, enrollment, billing, and claim-escalation issues.
• Reconcile benefit invoices and payroll deductions in partnership with Payroll and Finance.
• Respond to employee benefit questions clearly, promptly, and with appropriate confidentiality.
• Assist with benefit plan documentation, required notices, audits, reporting, and vendor relationships.
• Manage FMLA and other leave requests from initial notice through return to work, including eligibility review, required communications, designation, certification tracking, recertification, and status updates.
• Coordinate company-provided leaves and applicable state or local leave programs, Workers’ compensation-related absences, military leave, parental leave, personal leave, and disability benefits, as applicable.
• Track leave timelines, intermittent leave usage, available balances, documentation deadlines, and return-to-work requirements.
• Communicate with employees, managers, Payroll, benefit carriers, and third-party administrators to support timely and consistent leave administration.
• Maintain regular, appropriate contact with employees on leave while protecting confidential medical information.
• Facilitate the ADA interactive process by receiving accommodation requests, gathering job-related information, coordinating documentation, and supporting individualized assessments of reasonable accommodations.
• Partner with HR and operational leaders to evaluate accommodation options, document decisions, implement approved accommodations, and monitor effectiveness.
• Recognize potential requests for leave or accommodation and provide timely guidance to employees and managers.
• Maintain complete, accurate, and confidential benefit, leave, and accommodation records in designated systems and separate medical files.
• Monitor changes in applicable requirements and help update procedures, forms, communications, and training materials.
• Prepare reports and identify trends related to benefit participation, leave usage, case volume, timelines, and service levels.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.
• Administer Workers’ compensation claims from initial incident report through claim closure, ensuring timely intake, documentation, communication, and follow-up.
• Coordinate with injured employees, managers, medical providers, insurance carriers, third-party administrators, legal counsel, and other partners throughout the claims process.
• Review workplace injury and illness reports for completeness, submit required claim information within applicable deadlines, and monitor claim status, treatment plans, work restrictions, and anticipated return-to-work dates.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for employees and managers regarding Workers’ compensation procedures, benefits, documentation requirements, and next steps.
• Partner with managers and Safety or Operations teams to support prompt incident investigation, identify contributing factors, and facilitate appropriate corrective actions.
• Coordinate transitional-duty and return-to-work programs, including review of medical restrictions, identification of suitable modified-duty assignments, and documentation of work-status changes.
• Coordinate Workers’ compensation absences with FMLA, ADA, disability benefits, payroll, and other applicable leave programs to support accurate and consistent administration.
• Maintain accurate, confidential claim files, logs, medical documentation, correspondence, and required postings or reports in accordance with record-retention and privacy requirements.
• Monitor claims for delays, high costs, litigation risk, or other concerns; elevate issues and partner with carriers or counsel to support timely resolution.
• Review claim reserves, medical and indemnity payments, invoices, and loss runs for accuracy; assist with audits, renewals, and risk-management reporting.
• Analyze injury trends, claim frequency, claim severity, lost-time data, and program costs; recommend opportunities to reduce risk and improve workplace safety and return-to-work outcomes.
• Stay informed of applicable federal and state Workers’ compensation requirements and assist with updating procedures, forms, communications, and manager training.
• Assist in other human resource department projects as assigned.

Qualifications

Education:

Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.

Experience:

• Three or more years of HR experience, including hands-on responsibility for employee benefits, Workers’ compensation and leave administration. Preferably in a multi-state environment.
• Working knowledge of FMLA, ADA, Workers’ compensation, benefit administration, privacy requirements, and related employment practices.
• Experience handling sensitive employee information and complex cases with discretion and sound judgment.
• Proficiency with HR information systems, benefits platforms, payroll interfaces, spreadsheets, and standard office applications.
• Strong written and verbal communication, organization, documentation, problem-solving, and customer service skills.

Why You’ll Love It Here (Full-Time Benefits)

• Multiple medical plan options, Vista Wellness (physician/pharmacy), Dental, Vision
• Generous PTO and paid holidays
• 401(k) with company contribution; Life and disability coverage
• Tuition reimbursement up to $15,000 and student loan assistance programs