Specialist, HR - Leaves

Uncommon Schools is a nonprofit network of high-performing, public charter schools providing an outstanding K-12 education in historically under-resourced communities. We have proudly built schools that reflect our student population, with more than 60% of our teachers and staff across our network identifying as a person of color. Uncommon currently manages 53 schools serving more than 20,000 students in five cities: Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark and Rochester. We are proud that Uncommon graduates persist in and graduate from college at five times the rate of their peers nationally. We achieve this by offering strong academic, co-curricular, and social-emotional learning that prepares students for success in college and beyond.

The Specialist, HR - Leaves directly supports the Leaves Manager and is responsible for assisting with the administration of primarily leave of absence, but also short- and long-term disability, workers' compensation and any ad hoc projects. They will serve as a leaves specialist when engaging with employees and school leaders. They will also collaborate with various teams as it relates to benefits data.

• Ensure accurate tracking and handling of all aspects of employee leave of absence and accommodation cases from beginning to end, including maintaining internal tracking systems and Uncommon's HRIS to ensure leaves management and the interactive process are aligned with regulatory requirements and company policies

• Contributes to and leads leaves-related special projects

• Maintains communication with employees on leave to facilitate smooth and timely return to work

• Ensures clear communication with managers regarding their direct report's leave, including return to work notification

• Full cycle management of the leave administration process including parental, FMLA, medical-self, family medical, workers' compensation, accomodations, and military from initial notice of the need for a leave to the return to work

• Advises managers and employees on the interaction of leave laws and internal leave policy with paid time off, workers compensation, and short-term and long-term disability benefits

• Recommends revisions to company leave policies to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local laws and regulations

• Maintains knowledge of all applicable leave and accommodation laws including the FMLA, ADA, and federal, state and local laws

• Collaborates with payroll to ensure accurate pay to staff on leave

• Work in partnership with third party administrator to process leave

• Holds third party administrator accountable for providing best in class service

• Preserve confidentiality of employee medical documentation

• Update and maintain the Leave and Accomodations process documentation

• Contribute to the development and co-facilitation of training for managers, HR, and employees, specifically in the areas of FMLA, ADA workers compensation, State leaves, parental leaves, short-term and long-term disability benefits, and other pertinent leaves.

• 5 years of professional experience; 3-4 years of directly related experience

• 2-3 years of HR experience; 2-3 years of Leaves experience preferred

• Bachelor's degree required; SHRM certification preferred

• Proficient in Microsoft Office and Google Suite

• Expertise in Microsoft Excel and/or Google sheets strongly preferred

• Proficient in, or exporsure to, Workday strongly preferred

Our people are what make us uncommon. It's important to us that our compensation practices align with our values and enhance our ability to attract and retain talent. Our compensation philosophy is focused on equity and fairness, retaining our talented staff and valuing their expertise, and transparency and clarity.

Compensation for this position: The starting compensation for this role based in NYC between $74,000 to $87,000 and generally, we expect that qualified candidates in this location will be made an offer between $74,000 and $78,300. The starting pay will depend on a variety of factors that may include but are not limited to experience, education, training, certification, and location. Because we value staff staying in their roles over time, we do not currently cap salary ranges.

Uncommon believes in the importance of being a diverse, equitable and inclusive organization that enables our students and staff to thrive. We are committed to building a talented team that reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students. At the same time, we work to ensure an inclusive community through creating a space for meaningful dialogue about issues of race and identity for our staff and students. As an equal opportunity employer, we hire without consideration to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status or disability.