ADA Specialist

About the role

The ADA Specialist role is a professional level position in the Unum Leave Management Center. The role serves as a liaison with our customers, assisting with understanding of individual claim or leave status, consulting and educating on disability-related matters, and facilitating clear understanding of Unum communications, processes, and benefits.

Responsibilities

• Serves as a “single point of contact” for our ADA customers' managers and designated HR representatives regarding questions related to ADA, integrated leave management procedures, FMLA process, and STD/LTD claims management.
• Provides consultation and education to customers about individual readiness or projected readiness of their employee to stay at work or return to work as well as ADA considerations.
• Upon request from the employer, manages the interaction between the employer’s representative, the employee, and the attending physician. This includes obtaining the appropriate forms to be signed, providing education about Unum’s role, the manager’s role, and the employee’s role in obtaining assistance, and facilitating discussions as needed to reach agreement on plans.
• Obtains or reviews medical information to determine whether to provide a recommendation to the customer regarding qualification of the employee for worksite modification and identifies possible worksite modifications for employees who present medical conditions or functional limitations that impact their abilities to perform work tasks or disrupt productivity levels.
• Partners with appropriate Unum entities, including the Law Department, clinical and vocational resources, and our disability/leave organizations, to effectively deliver the service.
• Remains current in education regarding state insurance privacy laws and HIPAA and assists the customer in identifying issues when communicating regarding medical information.
• Tracks what modifications are provided by the customer and ensures proper documentation on all interactions and customers' modification decisions.
• Performs other duties as assigned by Unum or as requested by our customer and approved by Unum.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent, relevant business experience
• Demonstrated experience and proficiency in disability management, leave management, workers compensation administration, clinical and/or vocational rehabilitation, disability case management, or human resources
• Grounding in legal issues pertaining to disability and absence management, particularly knowledge of FMLA, ADA, and state leave laws
• Proven excellence in using persuasion and negotiation skills
• Demonstrated collaborative behavior and being a strong team player
• Strong creativity and problem-solving skills, including ability to analyze impacts and implications of viable approaches, identify alternative approaches, achieve resolution
• Demonstrated analytical skills including ability to produce credible reports and documents on a range of related topics
• Ability to effectively participate in relatively ambiguous work situations and structures
• Ability to exercise sensitivity, encouragement, and discretion with customer’s employees to encourage return to work or stay at work
• Ability to work cooperatively with employers, vendors, and clinical specialists to conceptualize, create, implement and evaluate RTW plans for employees
• Understanding and proficient use of system applications, including tools for tracking, documenting and/or diary systems