Payroll Accountant

Responsibilities

• Process full-cycle, biweekly payroll for a large employee population.
• Review, calculate, and validate employee wages, overtime, deductions, benefits, and other payroll-related transactions.
• Interpret and apply collective bargaining agreements and contract-specific payroll requirements.
• Support union and multi-state payroll processing.
• Perform detailed payroll audits, reconciliations, and pre- and post-payroll reviews.
• Prepare, review, and analyze payroll reports using Microsoft Excel.
• Maintain accurate payroll documentation and employee records.
• Partner with Human Resources, Finance, Accounting, and other internal departments to address payroll-related matters.
• Aid in improving payroll workflows, controls, and processing efficiency.
• Maintain confidentiality and accuracy when handling sensitive employee and financial information.
• Work extended payroll-processing hours every other Monday as required.

Qualifications

• At least five years of payroll experience with a bachelor’s degree or eight years of payroll experience without a degree.
• Previous union payroll experience required.
• Experience interpreting and applying collective bargaining agreements and complex payroll rules.
• Experience supporting high-volume payroll for a large employee population.
• Multi-state payroll processing experience required.
• Experience working in a manual or audit-intensive payroll environment.
• Knowledge of payroll taxes, deductions, benefits, wage calculations, and compliance requirements.
• Experience performing payroll audits, account reconciliations, and general ledger reconciliations.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including PivotTables, VLOOKUPs, and macros.
• Experience with Paycom, UKG, Kronos, or a comparable payroll system preferred.
• Experience processing payroll under Illinois union agreements is strongly preferred.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to identify and resolve discrepancies.
• Ability to manage a high-volume workload under strict payroll deadlines.
• Dependable, accountable, and capable of maintaining consistent productivity in a remote environment.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Willingness and ability to work extended hours every other Monday during payroll processing.