Human Resources Benefits Associate I

The Benefits Associate I administers and coordinates a variety of Human Resources and employee benefits activities to ensure the effective delivery of HR services. This position serves as an ambassador for HR and will be the primary point of contact for the Human Resources Department for benefits inquiries. Under the direction of the Senior Benefits Manager, this role will support HR policy maintenance, operations, and benefits administration with accuracy, confidentiality, and customer service excellence. 

Essential Functions 

 The Benefits Associate I: 

• Administers employee benefits programs including health, dental, life and AD&D, disability, retirement, and flexible spending plans.
• Provides information and assistance to employees regarding benefit eligibility, plan options, and enrollment processes; ensures timely and accurate responses to inquiries. 
• Partners with the Senior Benefits Manager to communicate and execute plan changes and enhancements. 
• Participates in annual benefit renewals and assists with evaluating new plan options or enhancements. 
• Coordinates open enrollment activities, including system updates, employee communications, and collaboration with brokers and carriers.
• Supports employee life cycle benefits processes, including new hire onboarding and employee offboarding. 
• Processes benefits transactions through HRIS and audits data for accuracy; ensures proper transmission of benefit feeds. 
• Confers with payroll and vendors to resolve benefit discrepancies and ensure accurate deductions. 
• Assists in the administration of leaves of absence.
• Coordinates with third party provider for COBRA notifications and enrollment processing; maintains compliance with federal and state requirements. 
• Administers Workers’ Compensation claims and related reporting, in conjunction with the Senior Benefits Manager and Office of Legal Affairs. 
• Processes unemployment claims and maintains related records.
• Ensures compliance with HIPAA and other confidentiality standards in all benefits-related activities. 
• Maintains thorough, accurate, and up to date benefits files and documentation in compliance with company policy and legal standards. 
• Coordinates HR and benefits initiatives, programs, meetings, and events, including scheduling, logistics, agendas, documentation, and follow up actions.
• Generates compliance and audit-related reports and maintains accurate records and documentation.
• Processes HR invoices and department mail (at the Waltham office 1-2 times/month), maintaining related administrative records 
• Serves as first point of contact for the HR department, responding to and routing all employee inquiries as appropriate.
• Collaborates across HR functions to support operational effectiveness and continuous process improvements. 
• Performs other duties as assigned dependent upon department needs.