Payroll Specialist

About the role

The Payroll Specialist is responsible for accurately processing a weekly payroll for employees, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and local regulations. This role involves analyzing payroll data, preparing reports, and addressing payroll-related issues.

Responsibilities

• Prepare and process weekly multi-state/multiple entity payroll for 700+ employees, including salaried, hourly, and Union Workers.
• Enter and maintain information in HR/Payroll system.
• Ensure accurate calculation of wages, overtime, deductions, and benefits.
• Enter and monitor wage assignments and garnishments to ensure accurate processing and payment by payroll services provider.
• Review timesheets, wage computation, and other information to detect and reconcile payroll discrepancies.
• Issue or reissue physical replacement checks due to payroll errors or terminations.
• Maintain Payroll and HR system tables including deduction calculations.
• Interface with payroll processing provider to resolve database and payroll processing issues.
• Aid with year-end tasks, including annual payroll balancing reports and W-2 processing tables.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated hands-on experience processing multi-employee payroll from payroll preparation through final payroll completion, including payroll balancing, payroll adjustments, payroll reconciliation, and responding to employee payroll inquiries.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent priorities while consistently meeting critical payroll deadlines in a structured, deadline-driven environment.
• Demonstrated ability to exercise sound judgment and maintain the highest level of confidentiality when working with payroll, compensation, benefits, and employee information.
• Experience processing multi-state payroll required; experience processing union payroll is strongly preferred.
• Working knowledge of payroll laws and regulations, including wage and hour requirements, payroll taxes, garnishments, and payroll reporting.
• Experience using an integrated HRIS/payroll system. UKG experience is preferred.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office, including intermediate Excel skills.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills with exceptional attention to detail.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to work collaboratively in a small HR team environment.
• Demonstrated reliability, personal accountability, and commitment to meeting deadlines.
• Ability to learn additional HR operational responsibilities and contribute to the overall success of the HR department.