Benefits Specialist - Goodwill Industries of Central Florida, Inc.

Our Mission - Building Lives That Work Goodwill Industries of Central Florida provides opportunities for every member in our community to develop their full potential. Since 1959, Goodwill Industries of Central Florida has been fulfilling its mission of “Building Lives That Work.”

About the role -

Requires expertise in benefit administration, payroll, compliance, and employment law. Oversee the administration of various employee benefit plans such as life, health, dental, and disability insurances, retirement plans, and leave of absence. Major duties include reconciling benefit invoices, processing leave of absences and updating retirement plans. In collaboration with insurance vendors, process enrollment information and participate in benefit and wellness education initiatives along with communicating daily with Goodwill Industries of Central Florida, Inc. staff about anything related to benefits and total rewards.

Responsibilities -

• Maintain group insurance/discount plans, including enrollments, terminations, responses to employee questions, COBRA, billing integrity, and recommendations on carriers and benefits.
• Implement retirement/profit sharing plans, including enrollments, terminations, distributions, information needed by provider or auditor, and employee questions and recommendations on carriers.
• Process leaves of absences, maintain up-to-date leave files and provide leave reports.
• Communicate with employees regarding their needs for leave and/or modified work schedules. Ensures that employees are aware of their responsibilities and of any documentation and notice required to qualify for and to take leave.
• Handles the FMLA leave administration process from the employee’s initial notice of the need for leave to return to work. This includes gathering and completing all required paperwork, determining leave eligibility, designating leave as FMLA-qualifying, requesting medical certification as needed, and accounting for intermittent and reduced schedule leave use.
• Maintains reasonable communication with employees on leave to facilitate smooth and timely return to work, relays communication between employees and their managers during leave within reason.
• Maintain employee benefit files and other record keeping.
• Support, track and audit enrollment of new employees in benefit plans and coordinate benefits orientation with our vendor.
• Audit retirement documentation and coordinate retirement education initiatives.
• Monitor effectiveness of wellness program initiatives by conducting needs analysis and suggesting process improvement enhancements.
• Research and maintain awareness of current business trends and practices in regard to personal wellness.
• Provide benefit materials and present benefit plan changes to employees as necessary.
• Communicate and coordinate benefit changes to the appropriate vendor for processing.
• Maintain vendor contacts to investigate discrepancies and provide information in non-routine situations.
• Monitor and maintain compliance with HR policies, procedures, and regulations. Conduct audits and implement corrective actions when necessary.
• Provide vendors appropriate documentation for life, retirement, and disability benefits claims.
• Process requests for census information and provide benefit reports and other audit items needed.
• Distribute required notices regarding benefits or health care.
• Coordinate wellness on benefit education initiatives.
• Participate in HR communication activities and benefit webinars.

Additional Functions/Duties:

• Create and execute the planning of Employee Wellness Events.
• In conjunction with Payroll Specialist, manage payroll processes, ensuring accuracy and timeliness.
• Collaborate with Accounting to handle payroll-related tasks, deductions, and tax compliance.
• Collaborate across departments to create and streamline HR and operational processes.
• Identify areas for improvement, implement best practices, and contribute to the overall efficiency of the organization.
• Through continuous education, be current on benefit trends through reading, research, networking and attending approved benefits training.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications/Competencies:

• Ability to adhere to the organization’s Core Principles.
• Knowledge of a variety of employee benefits plans.
• Knowledge of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
• Knowledge of basic Human Resources policies and procedures.
• Knowledge of basic office practices and procedures.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality of departmental information.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Knowledge of appropriate software and the ability to produce grammatically correct and error-free work.

Education:

Bachelor’s degree in human resources, Business Administration, or related field. 3+ years of progressive experience in HR with a focus on benefit administration, employment law, payroll, and compliance.

Computer Skills:

To perform this job successfully, an individual should have intermediate knowledge of MS Word, Excel, Outlook, and Human Resources databases.

Physical and Environmental Requirements:

• Regularly lift and /or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.
• Vision abilities required by this job include close, distance, color, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.
• Sitting for long periods.
• Stooping and bending.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate (examples: business office with computers and printers, light traffic).

Language Ability:

Level 4: Ability to read, analyze, and interpret business documents. Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and public. Bilingual preferred.

Reasoning Ability:

Level 4: Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.

LICENSE AND CERTIFICATIONS

Valid Florida Driver’s License with an insurable driving record and current private auto insurance policy.