Sr. Payroll Analyst

About the role

We are seeking a detail-oriented Sr. Payroll Analyst to support the execution of high-volume, weekly payroll operations across a multi-state workforce. This role requires hands-on experience with Paylocity, strong proficiency in Excel, and a working knowledge of prevailing-wage payroll requirements. This position plays a key role in ensuring payroll accuracy, maintaining compliance with federal and state regulations, and supporting a fast-paced, deadline-driven payroll function with a high level of audit readiness.

Key Responsibilities

• Process full-cycle weekly payroll accurately and on time across multiple states and entities
• Import, validate, and reconcile timekeeping and payroll data within Paylocity
• Perform payroll audits, including variance analysis, gross-to-net validation, and earnings/deduction reconciliation
• Experience using a Ticketing System to track payroll requests
• Apply and validate prevailing wage requirements, including:
  • Correct wage determinations (base rate and fringe allocations)
  • Proper classification of labor categories
  • Accurate tracking of hours by job and rate
• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local payroll laws, including multi-state taxation and pay frequency requirements
• Partner with HR, Benefits, and Finance to ensure accurate and compliant payroll data
• Respond to employee inquiries related to pay, taxes, deductions, and direct deposit
• Support payroll reporting, reconciliations, and audit documentation
• Adhere to internal controls, approval workflows, and separation of duties

What Success Looks Like

• Weekly payroll processed accurately and on time
• Accurate application of multi-state tax and prevailing wage requirements
• Strong data validation using Excel to prevent payroll errors
• Minimal adjustments and timely resolution of payroll issues
• Audit-ready documentation and strong compliance outcomes

Why Join Us

• Fast-paced, high-impact payroll environment
• Opportunity to work with complex multi-state and prevailing wage payroll structures
• Collaborative partnership with HR, Benefits, and Finance
• Focus on process improvement, compliance, and operational excellence

Qualifications

• 2–5+ years of payroll experience, including weekly payroll processing
• Proven experience with multi-state payroll
• Hands-on experience with Paylocity strongly preferred
• Correct wage determinations (base rate and fringe allocations)
• VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP
• IF formulas and nested logic
• Pivot tables and data reconciliation
• Ability to analyze large datasets and identify discrepancies
• Strong understanding of payroll laws (FLSA, taxation, wage and hour compliance)
• Experience or working knowledge of prevailing wage (Davis-Bacon and/or state-specific requirements such as CA/IL/NY/NJ)

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in prevailing wage or government contract payroll environments
• Experience in high-volume or multi-entity payroll environments
• Exposure to audit or SOX-controlled environments