Job: BENEFITS SPECIALIST

BENEFITS SPECIALIST

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BENEFITS SPECIALIST

Req #: 103693 Department: BENEFITS OFFICE - HUMAN RESOURCES Job Location: Other Locations Job Location Detail: UW Tower  Posting Date: 12/16/2013  Closing Info: Open Until Filled  Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience and education.  Notes: As a UW employee, you will enjoy generous benefits and work/life programs.  For detailed information on Benefits for this position, click here.

The University of Washington (UW) is proud to be one of the nation’s premier educational and research institutions. Our people are the most important asset in our pursuit of achieving excellence in education, research, and community service. Our staff not only enjoys outstanding benefits and professional growth opportunities, but also an environment noted for diversity, community involvement, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits, and natural beauty.  The Benefits Office, a division of Human Resources, centrally administers all University of Washington benefits, including retirement, healthcare, life, specialized disability products, and a wide range of other optional and voluntary benefits programs for over 30,000 UW faculty, staff, and students.  We provide premier benefits services, supporting the campus community in maintaining a versatile and competitive environment for hiring, retaining and promoting staff while exercising best benefits practices.     The University of Washington’s Benefits Office has an outstanding opportunity for a Benefits Specialist. RESPONSIBILITIES:  This individual will be responsible for independently managing benefits eligibility for all benefits programs; provide expert guidance and education to all levels of faculty, staff and students; evaluate benefits eligibility for all programs; independently resolve complex customer service issues; communication of eligibility changes both directly to the customer and/or department; works with outside agencies and vendors to coordinate benefits programs and eligibility as needed.  Additionally, the person in this role will perform the following key duties:  Create and provide presentation of benefits package at new employee orientation.  Prepare and coordinate responses to requests for benefits audits  Serve as a resource to the HR Operations teams and department clients on matters related to all levels of benefits questions.  Coordinate benefits for FMLA, leave of absence, layoff, etc. with employee, department, and other parts of HR to ensure appropriate administration of benefits.  Maintain current knowledge of applicable state and federal laws/regulations that pertain to benefits changes and practices. Includes providing training and counseling on issues pertaining to federal tax law, ERISA; state law; and maintaining UW compliance with such.  Develop communications for benefits including web information, publications, business correspondence and reports. Lead research projects to develop information requested by faculty councils, administration or other committees.  As part of the Benefits team, interact, provide suggestions and implement changes to work processes; assist in the development for plans and implementation of enhancements to the benefits package.  Perform special projects as assigned.   Competitive candidates will possess excellent writing and oral communications skills as well as demonstrated experience in customer service. Inherent to success in this position is the ability to work with complex organizational structures.

REQUIREMENTS:

-Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of experience and education.  -Two years of progressively responsible para-professional level work in human resources, insurance, pensions or related field.  -Demonstrated ability to work effectively with complex organizational structures.   -Excellent written and oral communications skills.    Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

Condition of Employment:

Position is funded until January 31, 2015, with possible extension contingent upon continued funding.  The Benefits Office is a business office, with public hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.  Occasional work outside these hours is required for seminars, presentations and other responsibilities to the campus community, etc.  Normal office conditions apply.     Appointment to this position is contingent upon obtaining satisfactory results from a criminal background check.  Application Process:  The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process.  These assessments may include Workforce Authorization, Criminal Conviction History, Cover Letter and/or others.  Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.

The University of Washington is a leader in environmental stewardship & sustainability, and committed to becoming climate neutral. The University of Washington is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 / 206-543-6452 (tty) or dso@uw.edu.

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