Senior Payroll Analyst

Job Summary

Job Description

Reporting to the Director of Payroll, the Senior Payroll Specialist will support payroll operations in conjunction with management.  Under limited supervision, responsible for overseeing the processing of the biweekly U.S. payroll as well as the Canadian payroll and any relevant day- to-day payroll processing functions. The Senior Payroll Specialist performs a wide variety of payroll and timekeeping processing, reporting, validation, and customer support activities to ensure all audits, payments, and payroll processes are accurate and timely in accordance with payroll laws and regulations, as well as internal payroll policies and procedures.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES

• Responsible for California biweekly payroll processing in Workday

• Perform all required audits during processing ensuring completeness of payroll checklist

• Audit and complete payroll close in UKG; reconcile hours between UKG and Workday

• Backup support as UKG subject matter expert

• Determine root cause of payroll errors by collecting and analyzing information under strict deadlines

• Proactively ensure all errors and issues are being resolved in a timely manner

• Support our internal and external customers that have payroll inquiries

• Analyze and process off-cycle pay, special payments, adjustments and reversals

• Assist with the development of payroll policy and procedures, contingency plans and process improvement initiatives by leveraging existing tools and processes and payroll best-practices

• Comprehensive knowledge of processing for Canada and other countries as assigned by the Payroll Manager

• Responsible for biweekly Canadian payroll processing beginning 1/1/2026

• Review annual tax statements (T4’s, RL-1’s, 2200’s ) for Canadian employees to ensure accuracy

• Participate in Financial and Benefits Audits as necessary

• Produces reports (labor distribution records, vacation and sick leave accruals, tax and benefit disbursements)

• Serves as backup for all payroll – cross train with all Payroll team members to ensure back-up support for all payroll processes

• Provides feedback to Payroll Director, ensuring timely issue escalation. Communicates and participates in problem resolution processes

MINIMUM JOB REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Human Resources, Business Administration or related field, or equivalent education and related training or experience

• Strong working knowledge of payroll wage and hour laws, tax regulations, and payroll operations

• At least 7 years of experience processing large multi-state payroll

• Strong knowledge of California payroll processing requirements

• Experience processing Canadian payrolls

• Strong working knowledge of payroll wage and hour laws, tax regulations, and payroll operations 

• Strong working knowledge of payroll system functionality and the ability to effectively utilize ERP applications

• Advanced spreadsheet skills (VLOOKUP, Pivots, functions, etc.)

• Strong communication skills with the ability to accurately understand and communicate payroll wage and tax information, payroll policies and procedures, and payroll system functionality to all levels of employees

• Ability to maintain a thorough understanding of the payroll cycle 

• Strong organizational skills with the ability to plan, organize, and prioritize tasks and schedules to meet critical deadlines in a fast-paced environment. 

• Demonstrate high levels of technical expertise, integrity, honesty, credibility, and the courage to make difficult yet necessary decisions

• Detail-oriented with excellent analytical skills and proactive with meticulous follow-up skills

• Ability to define problems, analyze data, and outline valid conclusions and action steps

• Ability to provide superior customer service through all types of interactions by maintaining a positive, friendly, professional and patient attitude at all times

• Self-starter who is able to work independently ensuring all payroll deadlines are being met

PREFERRED JOB REQUIREMENTS

• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) designation

• Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Human Resources, Business Administration or related field

• Strong working knowledge of payroll wage and hour laws, tax regulations, and payroll operations

• At least 7 years of experience in processing U.S. multi-state payroll,