Compensation & Benefits Specialist

Benefits Administration

• Perform weekly and monthly benefits reconciliations to ensure accuracy of enrollments and vendor billing.
• Manage 401(k) funding processes, including timely contributions and coordination with payroll and vendors.
• Oversee the workers’ compensation program, including vendor partnerships, claims oversight, cost containment strategies, and return-to-work programs.
• Oversee short-term disability, long-term disability, and absence programs ensuring compliant administration of statutory and company sponsored policies.
• Lead the administration and continuous improvement of leave and absence programs, including FMLA, ADA, state and local paid leave programs, and company leaves.
• Partner with third-party administrators to ensure accurate and compliant program administration with evolving regulatory requirements.
• Analyze utilization trends and program costs to support design, optimization and strategic improvements.
• Lead return-to-work and accommodation strategies, partnering with business leaders to reduce lost time, enable safe transitional work, and support sustainable reintegration into the workforce.
• Ensure full regulatory compliance with federal, state, and local requirements (e.g., Workers’ Compensation statutes, ADA, FMLA coordination, state disability laws), including audits, reporting, and documentation standards.
• Serve as the escalation point for complex, high-risk, or sensitive cases involving serious injuries, prolonged disability, and return-to-work challenges.
• Serve as the subject matter expert for leave, disability, workers compensation and absence-related compliance.
• Identify opportunities to improve processes, systems integration, and employee experience.
• Conduct regular audits of 401(k) and other benefit plans to ensure compliance and accuracy.
• Serve as a point of contact for employee benefits inquiries and issue resolution.

Compensation Administration

• Administer annual salary programs, including salary structure creation, maintenance, and updates.
• Manage and support annual and quarterly bonus programs, including planning, calculations, tracking, and payouts.
• Support development and execution of merit increase cycles and incentive compensation programs.
• Assist in creating and managing salary increase and bonus budgets.
• Conduct market benchmarking and compensation analysis to ensure competitive pay practices.
• Partner with HR and leadership to provide insights and recommendations on compensation strategies.
• Maintain compensation data integrity and generate reports as needed.

Vendor Management

• Manage relationships with external vendors, including benefits providers, brokers, and payroll partners.
• Act as the primary liaison for vendor communications, issue resolution, and service delivery.
• Monitor vendor performance against service level agreements (SLAs) and contractual obligations.
• Coordinate vendor renewals, implementations, and open enrollment support.
• Partner with vendors to identify process improvements and cost-saving opportunities.

Payroll Support (Backup)

• Serve as backup for payroll processing, ensuring timely and accurate payroll execution.
• Review and validate payroll data, including earnings, deductions, and taxes.
• Assist with payroll audits, reconciliations, and reporting.
• Partner with payroll, HR, and finance teams to resolve discrepancies and ensure compliance with applicable laws.
• Maintain confidentiality and accuracy of payroll records.
• Maintain records that are in compliance with Customer, FAA, and DOT regulations.

Collaboration & Reporting

• Work cross-functionally with payroll, finance, and HR teams to ensure alignment and data accuracy.
• Prepare reports and analytics related to compensation and benefits for leadership review.
• Assist with internal and external audits related to compensation, benefits, and payroll programs.