Benefits Manager

Leave of Absence Specialist –

Location:

Plano, TX.

Employment Type:

Contract-to-Hire. Pay Rate: $30.00–$40.00/hour. Salary Range upon conversion: $60,000–$85,000 annually, based on experience. Work Arrangement:
Hybrid – 4 Days Onsite / 1 Day Remote. Onsite

Schedule:

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday required onsite; employee may select the fourth onsite day. Hybrid Requirement: 4 days onsite per week is non-negotiable.

Wheeler Staffing Partners is seeking an experienced Leave of Absence Specialist for a contract-to-hire opportunity in Plano, TX. This position will support the Total Rewards function by administering employee leave programs and serving as a primary resource for employees, managers, and HR leadership throughout the leave process. The ideal candidate has at least 3 years of hands-on leave of absence administration experience and strong working knowledge of leave eligibility, employee communications, benefits and payroll impacts, return-to-work coordination, and leave tracking.

Hands-on Paycom experience is required.

• Administer employee leaves of absence, including maternity and paternity, medical, disability, military, and unpaid leave.
• Review leave requests and determine employee eligibility based on applicable policies and requirements.
• Guide employees and managers through leave processes, requirements, documentation, and next steps.
• Coordinate leave coverage, extensions, return-to-work activities, and separations when applicable.
• Enter, review, approve, and maintain employee leave information in Paycom.
• Update employee statuses and process leave-related personnel actions in Paycom.
• Manage benefit plan arrears associated with employee leaves and communicate amounts due and payments received with employees and accounting.
• Review employee leave statuses during each biweekly payroll cycle to help ensure accurate payroll and benefits processing.
• Partner with payroll, benefits, accounting, HR leadership, and other internal stakeholders to resolve leave-related issues.
• Support the transition of leave administration from a third-party vendor to an internal process.
• Assist with training HR Directors, managers, and employees on leave procedures and internal processes.
• Identify opportunities to improve leave administration processes, workflows, and systems.
• Prepare and maintain leave reports, records, and supporting documentation.
• Maintain current leave-related communications and employee self-service resources within Paycom, SharePoint, and benefits platforms.
• Monitor and manage the leave of absence mailbox and respond to employee and manager inquiries within established service expectations.
• Maintain accurate and confidential employee records and appropriately handle sensitive employee information.
• Ensure leave activities are completed accurately, consistently, and in accordance with company policies and applicable requirements.

• Minimum of 3 years of hands-on Leave of Absence (LOA) administration experience.
• Experience managing leave eligibility, employee communications, leave tracking, documentation, and return-to-work coordination.
• Hands-on Paycom experience required.
• Experience entering and maintaining employee leave records and employee status changes within Paycom.
• Strong understanding of how employee leave status impacts payroll and benefits.
• Experience communicating leave policies, procedures, requirements, and next steps to employees and managers.
• Strong organizational skills and exceptional attention to detail.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong customer service and follow-through skills.
• Ability to independently manage multiple employee leave cases, priorities, and deadlines.
• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive employee information with discretion.
• Ability to work onsite in Plano, TX 4 days per week on a non-negotiable hybrid schedule.

• Experience supporting leave administration within a Total Rewards, Benefits, or Human Resources function.
• Experience transitioning leave administration from a third-party vendor to an internal process.
• Experience managing benefit arrears associated with employee leaves.
• Experience reviewing leave status as part of payroll processing.
• Experience developing or maintaining employee leave communications, training materials, or self-service resources.
• Familiarity with SharePoint and HR benefits platforms.