ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY The Senior Benefits Associate position is responsible for providing administrative support to the Benefits Manager in the day-to-day is administration of a suite of benefit packages serving both US domestic and international locations, with a focus on providing a high-quality benefit member experience alongside a routine schedule of benefit administrative duties in a fast-paced environment. The Senior Benefits Associate will follow established policies and processes to meet the needs of staff members and internal deadlines for a variety of benefits programs including, but not limited to, health and wellness, tax-advantaged plans, retirement, life, disability, and leave of absence plans. As part of the People and Culture team, the Senior Benefits Associate is responsible for maintaining and communicating confidential information in a professional manner and will provide general human resources project support to the People and Culture team as needed.

LOGISTICS Internews has US offices in Arcata, CA and Washington, DC which support a hybrid workforce with staff working remotely, fully in-office, or partially remote. This is a remote US based role, and candidates based anywhere in the United States will be considered. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so candidates are encouraged to apply soon.

OUR COMMITMENT TO FOSTERING A CULTURE OF BELONGING We are an organization of dynamic, mission-driven individuals who are passionate about our core values and about supporting positive change in the world. We pride ourselves on our commitment to innovation and flexibility. We believe that diverse teams are strong teams and work to support an ethic of belonging, dignity, and justice for all people. Our current team includes a mix of genders, parents and non-parents, and people of multiple races, nationalities, ages, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We are an EEO employer and encourage candidates of all races, genders, ages, orientations, ethnicities, and national origins to apply, and welcome those with alternative backgrounds and experiences.

DAY-TO-DAY TASKS are under the direction and guidance of the Benefits Manager and include: Benefits and Leave Communication

• Serves as a first point of contact to provide group and/or one-on-one guidance related to benefits packages and leave of absence policies for HQ benefits eligible staff, and related umbrella policies covering other types of staff.
• Tracks, monitors, and provides confirmations of benefit package enrollment for new hires and qualifying event changes using template emails. Assists staff with accessing resources and navigating third party vendor websites.
• Supports the facilitation of the annual open enrollment processes, meetings, and outreach.
• Participates in the maintenance and updating of benefits education and administration materials, including forms and presentations, and coordinates their regular distribution and posting on Internews intranet as directed.
• Responds to individual and group messages to the People and Culture team with sensitivity, clarity, and professionalism.

Benefits and Leave Administration Support

• Supports the full-cycle employee enrollment process during hire, open enrollment, and qualifying event changes, including processing routine open enrollment events and documentation, monitoring data entry accuracy, and confirming eligibility and enrollment details with employees, vendors, and brokers.
• Collaborates closely with the payroll and accounting teams on benefits changes, implementation of benefits related taxes, funding, and corrections as needed.
• Serves as primary point of contact for benefits member navigation support, resolving routine service and claims issues with vendors and brokers, and ensuring a positive employee experience, escalating non-routine requests to the Benefits Manager.
• Provides standardiz d leave of absence communications, and ensures accurate and complete documentation of the in-house managed processes in alignment with internal and external policies and timelines.
• Supports the timely processing of monthly invoicing, and with the guidance of the Benefits Manager participates in regular internal audits and bill reconciliations.
• Provides administrative support for tasks related to a calendar of recurring benefits administration and compliance activities on a weekly, monthly, and annual basis, including but not limited to enrollment audits, billing, funding, and mandated reporting and notices.

General Team Support

Collaborates across People and Culture sub-teams on cross functional tasks and project work, as directed.

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