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 human resources duties related to the approval and denial of employee leaves of absence, including the administration of the Family Medical Leave Act and ensures compliance with applicable rules, policies, collective bargaining agreements and the Secretary of State Merit Employment Code; serves as backup to Workers Compensation Coordinator and serves as technical expert for paraprofessional staff. Duties and Responsibilities Receives, reviews, approves and/or denies requests for leaves of absence in accordance with the provisions of the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA); confers with management staff legal counsel, medical facilities, physicians, clinics and other medical professionals to obtain information necessary for proper completion of documents; exercises judgment and discretion in approval or denial of FMLA leave requests. Receives, reviews and processes requests for leaves of absence not covered by the FMLA; determines if submitted documentation is in compliance with applicable policies, rules, labor law and collective bargaining agreements; contacts employees and/or medical practitioners to obtain necessary information for granting of leave requests; composes unique correspondence and modifies form letters necessary for such matters as approval notification, reminders of leave expiration, letters regarding permanent disability and requests for employee action. Responds to inquiries from other department staff, employees, management and personnel liaisons on the application of the Department of Personnel Rules, the Merit Employment Code and Policies and procedures governing the transaction process regarding leaves of absence and the Family Medical Leave Act. Serves as backup to Workers Compensation Coordinator, handling worker's compensation claims, filing medical and financial documentation and coordinating claims with CMS Risk Management. Serves as backup for receiving and preparing confidential medical files for scanning into database by determining the purpose of the documents and the appropriate category in accordance with established policies and procedures where the application of laws, rules, regulations, policies is established and well defined; scans medical documents into appropriate category and maintains medical file database for section, including sorting and alphabetizing documents; files and retrieves documents as requested; copies and scans records and passes onto requesting personnel as needed; prepares closed files for scanning and storage in compliance with Records Retention Schedules for medical files. Serves as backup for maintaining confidential medical files for section, including sorting and filing leave-related documents; retrieves documents as requested; copies and scans records and passes onto requesting personnel. Prepares closed files for scanning and storage in compliance with Records Retention Schedules for medical files and workers' compensation files. Files and maintains medical related documents; prepares closed files for scanning and storage in compliance with Records Retention Schedules for medical files. Performs other duties as required or assigned. Education and Experience Requires knowledge, skill and mental development equivalent to completion of four years college and two years of professional personnel or human resources experience in a public or private organization. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Requires extensive knowledge of office procedures, practices, equipment and personal computers. Requires extensive knowledge of personnel/human resources practices and techniques. Requires extensive knowledge of composition, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Requires extensive knowledge of the principles of organizational administration and structure. Requires working knowledge of arithmetic computations. Requires working knowledge of the Secretary of State merit Employment Code, rules, and regulations or equivalent knowledge gained in other merit or civil service settings. Requires ability to effectively interact with employees, management personnel, the general public, applicants and other personnel professionals. Requires ability to follow detailed oral and written instructions. Requires ability to present technical ideas clearly and effectively both orally and in writing. Requires ability to read and comprehend laws, rules, regulations, policies and procedures. Requires ability to analyze facts and information and draw logical conclusions. Requires willingness to travel and possession of a valid Illinois driver's license as required by individual positions within the class. Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Applicants must be lawfully authorized to work in the United States. Applicants are considered for all positions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital or veteran status, or the presence of a non-job-related medical condition or disability. #J-18808-Ljbffr