Sr. Benefits Specialist (Health & Welfare)

Job Summary The Senior Benefits Specialist – Health & Welfare is responsible for the effective administration, compliance, and optimization of employee health and welfare benefit programs. The role serves as a subject matter expert, ensuring programs align with regulatory requirements and organizational objectives. Job Responsibilities Administer health and welfare programs, including Medical, Dental, Vision, Health Savings Accounts and COBRA, ensuring compliance with plan guidelines and legal requirements while managing day‑to‑day vendor interactions and resolving escalated employee benefit issues. Provide training and act as a liaison to HR teams concerning benefits policies and compliance; handle troubleshooting and integration file‑feed issues between Workday and third‑party systems. Develop and maintain benefit communication materials, such as SBCs and SPDs, and coordinate with internal departments like Payroll and Clinics to support benefit initiatives and communications. Ensure accurate processing of benefit enrollments, changes, and terminations while maintaining data integrity across HRIS and vendor platforms. Respond to complex employee and HR inquiries related to benefits. Support annual open‑enrollment activities, including communications, lead system testing, and vendor renewal and RFP processes. Develop and maintain SOPs for the Health and Welfare workstream. Monitor and implement changes based on federal, state, and local regulations (e.g., ACA, ERISA, HIPAA, COBRA). Prepare and distribute legally required notices and filings, coordinate plan amendments, and ensure documentation is up to date. Support internal and external benefit plan audits and compliance reviews. Act as the primary contact for employee health and welfare benefit inquiries, resolve complex issues in collaboration with vendors and internal stakeholders, and deliver employee education materials and benefit workshops. Partner with other members of Benefits and HRIS teams to resolve eligibility and enrollment issues in the HRIS platform. Partner with external vendors to ensure service quality, resolve escalated issues, and participate in selection, renewals, and performance reviews. Audit vendor data feeds and billing for accuracy. Support the planning and execution of open enrollment, including testing, communications, troubleshooting, and implementation of new benefit programs or changes. Analyze utilization data, create reports to identify trends, recommend program enhancements, and develop action plans for improvement. Research the market for benefits best practices, perform benchmarking analyses, and evaluate emerging market trends. Qualifications 5+ years of experience in benefits administration with a focus on health and welfare. Strong knowledge of benefits regulations and compliance. Proficiency in HRIS systems and Microsoft Excel. Excellent communication, analytical and problem‑solving skills. Ability to manage multiple priorities and projects independently. Physical ability to stand, lift and carry packages weighing up to 50lbs; stand, walk, and perform repetitive tasks for extended periods. Ability to work non‑standard shifts when needed (holidays, weekends, extended shifts). Willingness to travel up to 10%. Bachelor’s degree in human resources, business, or a related field. Work Environment While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to typical risks of injury in an office environment and may perform extensive computer work, both sitting and standing. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Must adhere to the company’s Code of Conduct and all other policies. Equal Opportunity Employer As an Equal Opportunity Employer, Wayne‑Sanderson does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, gender (sex), sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, citizenship status, a person’s veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law or executive order. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. #J-18808-Ljbffr Wayne Farms LLC