Protected Leave Specialist - Olympia

Protected Leave Specialist (HRC2)

Our vision is to ensure that "Washington state's children and youth grow up safe and healthy, thriving physically, emotionally, and educationally, nurtured by family and community."

Location:

Olympia, WA (This position is hybrid with periodic in-office presence required)

Telework:
This position is currently designated as a telework position. Telework arrangements are subject to business needs and may change. You must be willing to report to the office for quarterly in-person meetings, IT or equipment support, or if the position is transitioned to an in-office work arrangement.

Closes:
Wednesday, August 26th, 2026

Salary: $61,332 - $82,440 Annually

We're looking for a dynamic and high-performing person to join our team; someone who embodies DCYF's core values of inclusion, respect, integrity, compassion, and transparency. Someone who has excellent communication skills and can prioritize tasks and collaborate with team members as their workload evolves. Our vision is that "All Washington's children and youth grow up safe and healthy – thriving physically, emotionally, and educationally;

nurtured by family and community."

The Opportunity:

This position supports the agency's mission to protect children and strengthen families by providing independent professional Human Resource (HR) consultation, advice, and support to assigned regions or functional areas. You will consult with and provide assistance to managers, supervisors, and employees on a variety of HR matters, including DCYF policies and procedures, Civil Service laws (WAC), Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and laws and regulations related to protective leave.

This includes the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML), pregnancy disability, domestic violence leave, and military leave. This role operates with general guidance from higher-level HR professionals.

Some of what you will get to do:

• Provide professional consultation to managers, supervisors, and employees on protected leave matters, including FMLA, PFML, pregnancy disability, domestic violence leave, military leave, and shared leave.
• Explain applicable state and federal regulations, agency policies and procedures, and Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA); anticipate needs and identify appropriate benefits and protections available to employees.
• Guide employees and supervisors through protected leave processes, including documentation requirements, required notifications, and determining FMLA eligibility through review of medical documentation.
• Facilitate and participate in interactive meetings with employees and management regarding protected leave matters and prepare necessary paperwork for management approval.
• Collaborate with higher-level HR Consultants on complex protected leave matters.
• Assist managers and employees with reasonable accommodation, return-to-work, and transitional duty processes, including participating in interactive meetings and consulting on workers' compensation-related leave.
• Maintain accurate and confidential documentation in Medical/Affirmative Action (Med/AA), Workplace Claims and Accommodations Unit (WCAU), shared leave, reasonable accommodation, and other applicable files; track protected leave activity and ensure required records retention.
• Provide back-up support to Protected Leave Consultants across other coverage areas as needed.
• Provide guidance, support, training, and assistance to new and lower-level HR Consultants.
• Conduct HR-related research; compile and analyze reports and statistical data; review HR reports for quality assurance and process corrections as needed.
• Create and maintain confidential HR electronic files in compliance with personnel rules (WAC), agency policies, and Collective Bargaining Agreements.
• Compose HR-related correspondence and provide training and coaching on protected leave and other HR-related matters, as needed.
• Attend and actively participate in HR unit and HR Programs team meetings.

Required Qualifications:

• A bachelor's degree with focus on business, human resources, social or organizational behavioral sciences, or related…