Senior Payroll Specialist (Remote | Temp-to-Perm Opportunity)

Employment Type: Temporary (with opportunity to convert to permanent)

Location: Fully Remote (U.S.)

Work Schedule: Candidates must be located in the Pacific, Mountain, or Central time zones to align with business hours

Pay Rate: $30.00/hour

About the Organization

We are a large, mission-driven organization with a nationwide workforce, supporting employees across multiple states. The organization operates within a complex, high-volume payroll environment and values accuracy, collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced Senior Payroll Specialist to support multi-state payroll operations in a fully remote, temporary-to-permanent role. This position is responsible for ensuring accurate, compliant, and timely payroll processing for a large employee population using Workday. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, highly organized, and comfortable leading day-to-day payroll activities in a deadline-driven environment.

This role will begin as a temporary assignment with the potential to convert to a permanent position based on performance and business needs.

Key Responsibilities

• Process and reconcile bi-weekly and semi-monthly multi-state payrolls using Workday
• Calculate and verify wages, benefits, deductions, garnishments, and tax withholdings in accordance with federal, state, and local regulations
• Perform payroll audits and internal controls to ensure accuracy and compliance
• Research, analyze, and resolve payroll discrepancies and payroll tax notices in a timely manner
• Coordinate daily payroll activities and ensure completion of payroll checklists and deadlines
• Provide operational payroll leadership support as needed to ensure continuity of payroll operations
• Verify new hire setup, employee changes, and state/local tax configurations
• Maintain and update payroll and tax system data, including account numbers, unemployment rates, and deposit frequencies
• Collaborate with HR, Finance, auditors, and government agencies to resolve payroll issues and provide documentation
• Manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment with strict deadlines

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of four (4) years of payroll experience in a multi-state environment supporting 5,000+ employees, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
• Hands-on experience with Workday Payroll
• Experience using ADP SmartCompliance
• Strong working knowledge of payroll regulations, tax compliance, and payroll accounting
• Exceptional attention to detail with strong analytical and organizational skills
• Ability to work independently while contributing effectively within a team
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, Outlook, PowerPoint)

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Business Administration, or a related field
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) or Fundamental Payroll Certification (FPC)