Program Manager, Leave of Absence and Time Off

Veolia Environnement SA•Milwaukee, WI

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Program Manager/Manager, Leave of Absence and Time Off is responsible for the end-to-end administration of employee leaves and time off programs, serving as a subject matter expert in leave of absence (LOA) and time off policies. This role partners closely with Veolia’s third-party leave administration vendor, HR Business Partners, HRIS, Benefits, Payroll, and Employee Health and Safety to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations while delivering a high-quality employee and manager experience. The role provides advanced-level support for Family and Medical Leave (FMLA), personal leave, military leave, state and local leaves, ADA accommodations, Veolia Caregiver leave, and paid time off programs. The Leave of Absence Administrator also plays a key role in policy governance, SOP development, audits, HRIS updates, and process improvement initiatives, including participation in M&A and global HRIS projects.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources or related field (or equivalent years of experience).
Minimum of eight (8) years of progressive experience in leave of absence administration or management in a high volume, complex, multi union work environment.
Broad HR knowledge of FMLA regulations, ADA, and other federal/state regulations in a multi-state environment.
Strong working knowledge of federal, state, and local leave of absence laws and regulations.
Experience administering complex leave and time off programs in a large or multi-jurisdictional organization.
Demonstrated ability to partner effectively with third-party administrators and cross-functional HR teams.
Experience working with HRIS systems; Workday experience strongly preferred.
High attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy and confidentiality.
Excellent customer service, communication, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Subject matter expertise in leave of absence and time off administration.
Regulatory and compliance focus.
Process improvement mindset.
Strong stakeholder partnership and collaboration.
Customer-centric approach.
Discretion and professionalism.

Nice To Haves

Experience supporting M&A activities, labor unions, system harmonization, or global HR initiatives.
Background in HR Shared Services or centralized HR operations.
Experience with audits, compliance reviews, and process documentation.
Experience with Workday.

Responsibilities

Manage the full leave administration lifecycle, from an employee’s initial notice of need for leave through return-to-work.
Serve as the primary point of contact for all leave of absence requests via phone, email, HR cases, and service tickets.
Partner with the HR Shared Services team to direct administrative tasks to include operation design, training and resource creation.
Coordinate and administer Family and Medical Leave, personal leave, unpaid leave, military leave, state and local leaves, ADA accommodations, and Veolia Paid Parental and Caregiver leave in partnership with the third-party leave administrator and Benefits COE.
Communicate regularly with external leave vendors and Benefits COE regarding leave status, earnings for disability calculations, status changes, discrepancies, and issue resolution.
Coordinate intermittent and reduced-schedule leave usage with managers and HR Business Partners and/or Employee Health and Safety, including assisting in identifying opportunities for ADA or other accommodations.
Coordinate the use of paid leave (PTO, mandated paid leave, or other paid programs) with employees and managers. Collaborate with the Benefits COE on policy redesign, best practices and support design.
Partner with Employee Health and Safety teams to ensure Workers’ Compensation status and pay information are accurate and current.
Partner with Labor Relations to union specific leave of absence matters, escalations and/or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) implementations.
Partner with Benefits COE on matters requiring policy interpretation, poor vendor performance and escalated situations to timely resolve matters or implement process improvements.
Partner with the Payroll Department to ensure accurate federal and state filing deductions, audits and resolve employee queries and escalated matters.
Coordinate and maintain the recovery of missed benefit premiums or deductions with Payroll, third party administrator and employee.
Coordinate all necessary HRIS and external vendor system programming to ensure the integrity of existing and new programs in partnership with HRIS, Benefits COE, Payroll, and third-party vendors.
Conduct and lead assessment of new and existing federal, state or local leave regulations to provide impact analysis, operation support design, implementation, communication and training, in partnership with Legal and the Benefits COE.
Participate in quarterly business reviews to assess vendor performance and provide feedback.
Coordinate, maintain and submit any required federal or state filing, applications and reporting in partnership with Payroll and Benefits COE.
Review, interpret, and support implementation and audit of new and updated time off policies. Partner with Benefits COE, legal, payroll, labor relations and other stakeholders to coordinate operational implementation and HR/employee education.
Create, maintain, and update standard operating procedures (SOPs), process maps, and employee-facing knowledge resources for all paid time off programs, including: Flexible Time Off (FTO), Vacation, Volunteer Time Off, Paid Safe and Sick Leave.
Provide Tier 2 support and resolve for time off and absence-related inquiries, escalating complex issues as needed.
Maintain HR data integrity by accurately entering and updating employee information in HR systems.
Partner with the HRIS team and leave administration vendors to ensure time off plans, leave requirements, and policy changes are properly configured, tested, and integrated within Workday.
Participate in global HRIS initiatives, including M&A onboarding, system harmonization, and policy alignment.
Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local leave laws, as well as Veolia policies.
Lead time off and leave audits to ensure compliance, accurate pay, and proper documentation.
Ensure compliance with data privacy, audit, and governance standards across all jurisdictions.
Preserve strict confidentiality of employee medical documentation and files.
Identify and implement process improvements to optimize leave and time off workflows and enhance the employee experience.
Develop and deliver training and knowledge-sharing sessions for HR Shared Services, HR Business Partners, and Payroll.
Participate in department-wide initiatives, projects, and M&A activities, providing subject matter expertise and operational insight.
Build and maintain strong working relationships with Benefits, HRIS, Payroll, Employee Health and Safety, HR Business Partners, managers, and employees.
Assist with employee engagement initiatives, reporting, and compliance audits as needed.
Support ongoing HR, Manager and/or employee education on leave of absence processes and programs to improve experience and raise awareness.