Benefits and Leaves Coordinator

The Benefits and Leaves Coordinator is the day to day owner of employee benefits, leave of absence administration, and workers' compensation for more than 450 employees across CWC LA's five schools and Regional Support Office. Reporting to the Senior Director of People and HR, you will administer the programs that determine whether an employee's health coverage stays active, whether their leave is properly protected, and whether their pay is accurate through a medical absence or a separation. This is a compliance heavy function with direct consequences for the people it serves, and it requires someone who works with precision and treats confidential information with care.

You will work with the Senior Manager of People and HR through the full benefits cycle, from new hire enrollment and Qualifying Life Events through annual Open Enrollment and benefit terminations, working directly with our benefits broker on eligibility questions and enrollment troubleshooting. You will administer all employee leaves, including Family and Medical Leave, California Family Rights Act leave, Pregnancy Disability Leave, personal leaves of absence, and workers' compensation leave. In practice that means determining eligibility, issuing required documentation, meeting with employees to review timelines and premium obligations, coordinating return to work with supervisors, and maintaining confidential records throughout. You will also coordinate final pay and vacation payout with Payroll under California's strict final pay timing requirements, and manage workers' compensation claims from the initial injury report through resolution.

This role is built for someone early in an HR career who is ready to own a function rather than support one. We do not expect deep expertise in California leave law on the first day. We do expect sound judgment about when to act and when to escalate, the discipline to track many concurrent deadlines without letting any lapse, and the ability to explain complex benefit and leave rules clearly to employees who may be navigating a difficult medical, family, or financial situation. You will have direct support from the Senior Manager of Payroll and Benefits and the Senior Director of People and HR on complex cases, and meaningful room to grow into deeper technical ownership over time.

Responsibilities

Benefits Administration

• Enroll benefits eligible employees in Ease and process ongoing benefit changes
• Process Qualifying Life Events, including review of supporting documentation and communication of outcomes within the 30-day eligibility window
• Serve as the primary contact for employee benefits questions and coordinate with the benefits broker on eligibility and enrollment issues
• Maintain Ease as the system of record and reconcile enrollment data against Paycom
• Administer annual Open Enrollment, including employee communications, enrollment tracking, and confirmation that elections flow correctly into payroll deductions
• Process 403(b) enrollments, changes, and updates
• Save supporting documentation in personnel folders and update the payroll tracker

Leave Administration

• Serve as the primary point of contact for employees and supervisors on all leave of absence matters
• Determine leave eligibility, including the 1,250 hour threshold, and identify which leave programs apply
• Administer Family and Medical Leave, California Family Rights Act leave, Pregnancy Disability Leave, personal leaves of absence, workers' compensation leave, military leave, and bereavement leave
• Issue leave paperwork and AbsenceResource guidance, and meet with employees to review anticipated dates, benefit continuation, and premium obligations
• Coordinate with supervisors on leave dates, coverage planning, and return to work
• Track leave timelines, extensions, documentation deadlines, and return to work releases, updating Paycom and the payroll tracker throughout
• Discuss repayment plans with employees who owe benefit premiums before their return
• Maintain confidential leave records and complete the quarterly AbsenceResource roster upload
• Escalate complex, contested, or accommodation adjacent cases to the Sr. Director of People and HR

Workers' Compensation

• Respond to reports of workplace injury and provide required forms and medical provider direction
• Partner with School Operations Managers and ASP Managers, who submit claims through CharterSafe, and maintain claim documentation centrally
• Coordinate with the claims adjuster, employee, supervisor, and medical provider through claim resolution, including paystub requests when wages are lost
• Track work restrictions, modified duty, and return to work status, and communicate restrictions to supervisors without disclosing medical information
• File all claim documentation in the employee personnel file
• Order and distribute annual employment law posters through the CharterSafe member portal

Payroll and Separation Support

• Coordinate final pay and vacation payout with Payroll, meeting California final pay timing requirements
• Process benefit terminations and coordinate continuation coverage notification with the broker
• Verify that approved change requests and stipends are reflected accurately in payroll
• Prepare and submit unemployment claim responses
• Maintain the payroll tracker for leaves, benefit changes, and separations
• Enter termination data in Paycom once payroll or a manual check has processed
• Process Paycom record changes that affect pay, including part time to full time status changes
• Complete employment and income verifications and student loan application forms
• Support Marshall Teacher Residency payroll needs, including Direct Deposit enrollment and monthly follow up on uncashed checks

Core Competencies

Accuracy and Follow Through

1. Maintains trackers, records, and system data that others can rely on without rechecking.

2. Manages many concurrent deadlines across leaves, enrollments, and claims without letting items lapse.

3. Follows up persistently until documentation is received and the file is complete.

4. Catches discrepancies between systems and resolves them at the source.

Confidentiality and Sound Judgment

1. Handles medical, financial, and personnel information with absolute discretion.

2. Understands what may be shared with a supervisor and what may not, and holds that line consistently.

3. Recognizes the limits of their own authority and escalates rather than improvising on eligibility questions.

4. Documents decisions and communications in a way that would hold up under review.

Employee Centered Communication

1. Explains complex benefit and leave rules in plain language to employees at every level of the organization.

2. Responds with warmth and patience to people navigating stressful medical, family, or financial circumstances.

3. Communicates timelines and requirements clearly enough that employees know exactly what to do next.

4. Keeps supervisors and school leaders appropriately informed without overstepping confidentiality.

Systems and Data Fluency

1. Works confidently in an HRIS, a benefits administration platform, and spreadsheets.

2. Learns new systems quickly and builds working knowledge of how data flows between them.

3. Uses reports and trackers to spot problems before they reach an employee's paycheck.

4. Suggests process improvements when a workflow is creating repeat errors.

Embodies Our Operating Values

1. We operate with generosity of spirit. We assume the best. We strive to be empathetic and compassionate.

2. We operate with integrity. We align our beliefs with our actions.

3. We operate with humility. We are respectful. We engage with an understanding that our experiences and perspectives are limited.

4. We operate with urgency and discipline. We know we can't wait, yet we respect that change takes time, care, and thought.

5. We operate as learners. We encourage vulnerability, poising ourselves for development and growth.

6. We operate with curiosity. We ask, "How? Why? Why not?"

7. We operate with the utmost professionalism. We do what we say we are going to do when we say we are going to do it.

• Passionate about CWC LA's mission and impact on its students and communities
• Bachelor's degree, or two or more years of relevant professional experience in place of a degree
• Bring some exposure to benefits administration, payroll, or leave of absence administration. We do not expect deep expertise. We expect curiosity, care, and the ability to learn quickly.
• Handle confidential and medical information with absolute discretion at all times
•  Best in class attention to detail and the ability to track many deadlines at once
• Communicate clearly and warmly with employees who may be navigating a stressful medical, family, or financial situation
• Be comfortable with spreadsheets, HRIS platforms, and learning new systems
• Enjoy working in a fast-paced, collaborative environment that promotes autonomy, flexibility, and accountability
• Professionally mature, humble, reflective, solution-oriented, and hold the highest ethical standards
• Demonstrate technical skills with Microsoft Office and Google Workspace and managing data
• Familiarity with California leave law, including FMLA, CFRA, Pregnancy Disability Leave, ADA, and FEHA (preferred)
• Experience with Paycom or a comparable HRIS (preferred)
• Experience in a school, charter, or nonprofit setting (preferred)
• Proficient in Spanish, both orally and in writing (preferred)

Qualities

• Understanding of diverse perspectives to cultivate collaborative and productive partnerships
• Belief and willingness to ensure that all students can learn and achieve at high levels
• Outstanding organizational skills and attention to detail
• Handle confidential and medical information discretely and professionally at all times
• Solid drive to surpass objectives and take initiative

Physical Requirements

• Approximately 50% of the time is spent sitting while frequently required to walk, stand, and bend
• Occasionally required to stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl
• Employees will be required to lift and move unassisted up to 25 pounds
• Sitting or standing for extended periods and manual dexterity to operate a computer and other various office equipment as needed