People Operations Manager, Benefits & Compliance

CARDEA HEALTH•Oakland, CA

7d•$100,000 - $120,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The People Operations Manager, Benefits & Compliance serves as a strategic partner within the People & Culture team, responsible for overseeing benefits administration, leave and accommodation programs, HR compliance, employee records, workers' compensation, HR systems, and workforce reporting. This role ensures organizational compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws while driving operational excellence across the employee lifecycle. The Manager serves as a trusted advisor to leaders on employee relations, leave management, accommodations, benefits strategy, and compliance matters. This position partners cross-functionally to develop scalable processes, improve employee experience, mitigate organizational risk, and support the organization's people strategy.

Requirements

Minimum 5 years of progressively responsible Human Resources experience, including benefits administration, leave administration, HR operations, or employee lifecycle support.
Working knowledge of California employment laws, HR compliance requirements, wage and hour regulations, and employee recordkeeping requirements.
Experience administering employee benefits programs, including enrollments, qualifying life events, employee communications, and vendor coordination.
Experience supporting leave administration, including FMLA, CFRA, California paid leave programs, and related compliance requirements.
Experience coordinating workplace accommodations and managing related documentation and tracking processes.
Experience administering or coordinating workers' compensation claims and return-to-work processes.
Experience utilizing HRIS platforms, employee data management systems, and reporting tools.
Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and confidential information.
Strong customer service, communication, and problem-solving skills.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, including Excel, Word, and Outlook.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Public Administration, or a related field.
PHR, SHRM-CP, CEBS, or other HR-related certification.
Experience supporting healthcare, nonprofit, behavioral health, community health, or multi-site organizations.
Advanced knowledge of California leave laws, including CFRA, Paid Family Leave (PFL), Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL), and other applicable state and local leave requirements.
Experience managing ADA accommodations, interactive process coordination, and disability-related employment matters.
Experience with Paycom or a comparable HRIS platform.
Experience developing HR metrics, dashboards, workforce reports, and analytics.
Experience supporting annual open enrollment planning and benefits renewals.
Experience conducting HR audits, compliance reviews, and process improvement initiatives.
Experience supporting organizations with 300+ employees and geographically dispersed teams.
Bilingual in Spanish and/or Tagalog are a plus.

Responsibilities

Manage the day-to-day administration and execution of employee benefits programs, including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability, retirement plans, wellness initiatives, and voluntary benefits.
Serve as the primary point of contact for employee benefits questions, escalations, enrollments, qualifying life events, and benefit issue resolution.
Lead the annual open enrollment process, including employee communications, training, system readiness, audits, and vendor coordination.
Partner with benefits brokers, carriers, and third-party administrators to ensure accurate administration and timely resolution of issues.
Oversee the administration of leave of absence programs, including FMLA, CFRA, ADA-related leave, pregnancy disability leave, paid family leave, workers' compensation leaves, and applicable state and local leave programs.
Manage the end-to-end leave administration process, including intake, documentation, tracking, employee communications, manager guidance, and return-to-work coordination.
Administer and coordinate the interactive process for workplace accommodations in partnership with employees, managers, and healthcare providers.
Ensure accommodation and leave cases are documented, tracked, and administered consistently and in compliance with applicable laws and organizational policies.
Manage day-to-day workers' compensation administration, including claim reporting, claim tracking, modified duty coordination, return-to-work planning, and communication with carriers and administrators.
Conduct regular audits of benefits, leave, employee records, I-9 documentation, HRIS data, personnel files, and compliance-related processes.
Ensure timely completion of required compliance activities, notices, reporting, postings, and employee documentation.
Monitor operational compliance with employment laws, regulations, and internal policies, escalating concerns and trends to leadership as needed.
Partner closely with the Director of HR Compliance and other People & Culture leaders to implement compliance initiatives, policy updates, corrective actions, and process improvements.
Support internal and external audits by gathering records, preparing documentation, responding to information requests, and implementing corrective actions as necessary.
Participate in organizational projects related to compliance, HR technology, employee experience, process improvement, and operational effectiveness.
Support employee relations investigations and documentation efforts as requested by People & Culture leadership.
Administer HRIS processes and maintain the integrity, accuracy, and confidentiality of employee data.
Oversee employee status changes, job changes, compensation updates, organizational changes, and related HR system transactions.
Develop, document, and maintain standard operating procedures for People Operations programs and processes.
Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, service delivery, employee experience, and administrative effectiveness across People Operations functions.
Partner with Payroll to ensure accurate processing of leave-related pay, benefits deductions, benefit reconciliations, and employee status changes.
Prepare, analyze, and maintain reports, metrics, and dashboards related to benefits, leave administration, compliance activities, HR operations, and workforce data.
Ensure a high level of confidentiality, professionalism, accuracy, and customer service in all employee interactions.
Provide guidance to managers regarding benefits administration, leave management, accommodations, employee documentation requirements, and company policies.
Serve as an escalation point for complex operational issues within assigned functional areas.
May provide oversight, training, work direction, or mentorship to People Operations support staff, coordinators, interns, or other team members.
Performs other duties and special projects as assigned.