Personnel Specialist

Office of the Illinois Secretary of State
Alexi Giannoulias
Job Title: Personnel Specialist
Division: LOA - Workers Comp
Union: IFT
Location: 501 S 2nd St, Springfield, IL – Sangamon County
Salary: Range $4,836 to $8,553 monthly – commensurate with experience
Benefits:

Overview:

Performs professional personnel work as coordinator of the Workers’ Compensation program for the Office of the Secretary of State; serves as liaison with the Department of Central Management Services, Risk Management Division, the State of Illinois’ third party Administration (TPA) for workers’ compensation insurance, and the Office of the Attorney General; ensures all cases are in compliance for record retentions; maintain a database of workers’ compensation claims for Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA);

reviews all workers’ comp claims within the agency and confers with departments regarding the work status of employees.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Establishes and maintains workers’ compensation files resulting from on-the-job injury/illness claims filed by Secretary of State employees, including appropriate forms, medical records, correspondence, medical bills, and a log of verbal conversations related to the claim. Gathers appropriate paperwork to file a worker’s compensation claim and submits to the TPA.
• Reviews and approves/denies requests for FMLA and disability leaves of absence in connection with an on-the-job injury/illness. Prepares correspondence concerning leave requests and informs the employee of benefits while on leave; prepares and forwards documents related to employee absences to the TPA.
• Coordinates the return to work of workers’ compensation claimants with the employing departments by notifying the department of the medical provider’s assessment of the employee’s ability to perform the duties of the position; ensures processing of transactions for return to work and stoppage of disability benefits; encourages department management staff to arrange for limited duty where medically necessary; provides job descriptions to medical providers and confers with them and case managers on availability of limited duty.
• Maintains a computerized database of information from workers’ compensation case files as required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA); at end of the year compiles annual log and summary for each work location of all work-related injuries/illnesses reported and forwards to each department for posting in the work place; compiles statistics from data for the annual “Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses” upon request of the Illinois Department of Public Health.
  
  Maintains and authorizes additions and changes to work location database for all work sites throughout the State.
• Confers with TPA and Risk Management personnel, Assistant Attorney Generals, medical providers and other interested parties to ensure all medical procedures related to claims are authorized, performed and billed and that payments related to claims are made in a timely manner; maintains contact with Claims Adjusters and Case Managers to expedite employees’ return to work and closure of claims; recommends Independent Medical Evaluations (IME’s) and Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCE’s) when review of case status warrants such action;
  
  monitors TPA payments for accuracy.
• Advises claimants and personnel liaisons in the employing department upon approval of a workers’ compensation claim in order to properly grant and record workers’ compensation “grace time” and “extended benefits” in accordance with the Personnel Rules and Policy Manual; updates appropriate forms filed with the TPA; upon claim denial, notifies the claimant, claimant’s supervisor, the employing department personnel…