What are the responsibilities and job description for the Leave Management Specialist position at Associa?
The Leave Management Specialist will administer the full cycle of employee leave and accommodation programs, including federal leaves, disability benefits, company leaves, workers’ compensation and state-mandated leaves. This role partners closely with HR, leadership and third-party administrators (TPAs) to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local leave regulations.
Duties include but are not limited to:
Administration of Leave of Absences and ADA Accommodations
- Manage the full cycle process for leaves including FMLA, ADA, PWFA, personal, military, workers’ compensation, and state leave programs.
- Act as the point of contact for employees and HR to address leave and accommodation requests or inquiries, providing clear communication and guidance.
- Partner with TPAs to ensure accurate processing of claims, eligibility determinations, and timely updates.
- Track proper management of leave use and approvals, certification deadlines, return-to-work status, and ongoing evaluations to ensure thorough and accurate documentation and compliance.
- Collaborate with employees, leaders and HR to facilitate accommodations request evaluations, complete the interactive engagement process and determine reasonable solutions.
- Coordinate with payroll to ensure leave status, benefit premium deductions, paid leave coordination, and return-to-work updates are accurately processed.
- Coordinate and track payment and delinquent benefit premiums with employees during duration of leave and/or upon return to work.
Benefits Administration:
- Assist to provide excellent customer service support regarding company benefits to employees via email, phone or other company channels.
- Work closely with Benefits Team, TPAs and Payroll to ensure employee data is accurate in HRIS and vendor systems.
- Assist to improve benefits administration processes by identifying deficiencies and recommending solutions.
Compliance & Documentation:
- Ensure all leave and accommodation processes align with applicable laws including FMLA, ADA, HIPAA, and state-specific leave laws.
- Maintain confidential records and files in accordance with company policy and legal requirements.
- Review and distribute weekly LOA status reports to HR and conduct quarterly claim audits to ensure data and process integrity.
- Stay current on changing legislation and leave trends to recommend process updates.
- Serve as a liaison between the employee, TPAs, and internal stakeholders to ensure a smooth and supportive leave or accommodation experience.
- Other duties as assigned
Qualifications:
- Knowledge of Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.) at a proficient level
- Professional customer service and communication skills (phone, interpersonal, written, verbal, etc.)
- Ability to manage multiple complex cases with professionalism and accuracy.
- Time management and critical prioritization skills
- Detail-oriented with a proactive, solutions-focused mindset.
Education and Experience
- 3 years of experience in leave administration and benefits.
- Working knowledge of FMLA, ADA, WC and federal/state leave laws.
- Experience coordinating with third-party administrators.
- Excellent communication, organization, and documentation skills.
- Experience in a multi-state, distributed work environment.
- Familiarity with leave tracking systems or HRIS platforms, ADP preferred.