Compliance Lead, Group Benefits

Guided by our company Purpose of “Inspiring well-being for our colleagues, consumers, and communities,” we are committed to building a best-in-class Law Department.

We drive a high-performance culture across our Legal, Compliance, and Government Affairs functions, aligned to “what” we deliver (i.e., our goals and objectives) and “how” we demonstrate our values and behaviors while focusing on the customer. We do this through leveraging a series of core capabilities, which includes accountability, interpersonal effectiveness, ability to demonstrate business savvy, being a subject matter expert, all while supporting the Law Department’s Mission to be a trusted advocate and advisor to drive strategic solutions that advance Guardian’s purpose, priorities, and values.

Do you want to be part of a collaborative Legal Compliance Team?

This role will be primarily responsible for providing regulatory compliance support and monitoring of the Guardian Group Benefits Product, Claims, State Filing and Policyholder Services Departments, with significant and specialized focus on support and oversight of Guardian’s Absence Management and Paid Family and Medical Leave services.

The individual in this role will support various Group Benefit areas by researching, analyzing, and evaluating state and federal laws to determine impact on business processes and accompanying key controls, and provide appropriate guidance to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. This position will also be responsible for the development, maintenance and execution of oversight protocols that help monitor compliance with state and federal regulatory requirements, as well as align with Guardian’s Corporate Policies.

You will

Provide Compliance support and oversight regarding regulatory compliance matters and requirements impacting:

• Both state and federal paid and unpaid leaves including Family and Medical Leave (FMLA); Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML); Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA); Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and State Mandated Disability programs (SMD)

• Group Disability and Supplemental Health products and claims.

• Group Value Added programs.

• State filing for these products/service.

• Provide regulatory compliance thought leadership and guidance related to both paid and unpaid leave products and services through subject matter expertise in federal and state regulations.

• Serve as a regulatory compliance subject matter expert to Product, Sales and Client Management, Marketing and Policyholder Service areas on PFML, FMLA, ADA, PWFA, USERRA, Group Disability, SMD, and Supplemental Health topics supporting customer facing engagements.

• Review and interpretation of new laws/regulations pertaining to certain key topics and tracking of business partners’ compliance with those requirements.

• Providing thought leadership regarding all aspects of Guardian’s absence products and services for employers. This may include supporting newsletters, industry presentations, broker engagements and other public-facing activities to support Guardian’s growth in the absence market. This may require supporting e-commerce initiatives, and other projects.

The individual in this role will also be responsible for the following:

• Providing detailed memoranda and other substantive guidance regarding legislative and regulatory requirements on an expedited basis to be distributed to Group Benefits business partners to facilitate requisite business decisions and implementation plans.

• Clarifying ambiguous legislative/regulatory provisions. Correspond directly with appropriate stakeholders in the Guardian Law Organization when additional interpretation is required.

• Providing oversight and monitoring of issues identified during compliance risk assessments, other control function reviews, and/or regulatory interactions. Assist business partners in developing appropriate controls to address any identified control deficiencies.

• Supporting implementation of Enterprise compliance projects and initiatives including compliance risk assessments and compliance trainings.

• Performing special projects and other ad-hoc assignments in support of Group Benefits Compliance efforts.

You have

• Strong relationship orientation and agility to navigate across the organization.

• 5 plus years legal/regulatory/compliance experience with life/health insurance carriers with particular focus on absence management and paid family and medical leave related issues

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Ability to respond to issues with urgency and be a trusted business partner.

• Maintain strong working knowledge of all relevant regulations and apply that knowledge to evaluating business controls.

• Self-motivated professional who will take proprietary ownership of their work, think strategically, work independently and as part of a team.

• Excellent interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to solve problems in a practical and pragmatic manner.

• Ability to work in a dynamic, hands-on manner and respond to questions from business areas.

• Ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment with special attention to detail

• Manage multiple projects and deliverables while executing a wide range of tasks simultaneously.

• An undergraduate degree is required, and an advanced degree such as a JD or MBA is preferred but not required.

• Must be computer literate (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.). Comfortable with and ability to adapt to innovative technology.

Reporting Relationships

As our Compliance Lead, you will report to our Senior Compliance Leader, who reports to the Head of Group Benefits Compliance.

Location /Travel

Hybrid role: 3 days in office, 2 days WFH. Preferred location – Hudson Yards, NYC; Holmdel, NJ; Bethlehem, PA; Pittsfield, MA; Stamford, CT;  or Boston, MA.

Salary Range:

The salary range reflected above is a good faith estimate of base pay for the primary location of the position. The salary for this position ultimately will be determined based on the education, experience, knowledge, and abilities of the successful candidate. In addition to salary, this role may also be eligible for annual, sales, or other incentive compensation.

Our Promise

At Guardian, you’ll have the support and flexibility to achieve your professional and personal goals.  Through skill-building, leadership development and philanthropic opportunities, we provide opportunities to build communities and grow your career, surrounded by diverse colleagues with high ethical standards.

Inspire Well-Being

As part of Guardian’s Purpose – to inspire well-being – we are committed to offering contemporary, supportive, flexible, and inclusive benefits and resources to our colleagues. Explore our company benefits at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits. Benefits apply to full-time eligible employees. Interns are not eligible for most Company benefits.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Guardian is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, creed, religion, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, marital status, disability, military or veteran status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.

Accommodations

Guardian is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. Guardian also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified job applicants (and employees) to accommodate the individual's known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless doing so would create an undue hardship. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact applicant_accommodation@glic.com.

Current Guardian Colleagues: Please apply through the internal Jobs Hub in Workday.

Salary : $101,180 - $166,220