Payroll Specialist

$49,504 - $49,504/Yr

Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Worcester, MA

Full-time - Entry Level

Worcester, MA

Educational Services

About the position

The Payroll Specialist at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is responsible for payroll processing activities, ensuring accurate data entry, providing customer service to employees and departments, and handling employment verifications. The role requires attention to detail and strong communication skills, with a commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace.

Responsibilities

• Deliver front-line human resources support to the WPI community by greeting and guiding customers including faculty, staff, students, and visitors.
• Monitor, research, respond, and follow up to customer inquiries in the Halo ticketing system; escalate as needed.
• Manage and respond to unemployment cases.
• Prepare and respond to verifications of employment requests through WorkNumber.
• Follow up with employees on missing information including Social Security Number, incomplete onboarding, and missing direct deposit.
• Assist with I-9 processing backup.
• Research issues and make recommendations to resolve payroll discrepancies.
• Reference and follow payroll/HR policies and procedures to support work and respond to requests from various customers.
• Maintain the WPI payroll website including updating FAQs as needed.
• Respond to inquiries related to IPAY (ADP) setup and access for terminated employees.
• Ensure timely entry of all employee timesheets including manager approval.
• Manage Wisely card for employees without direct deposit.
• Enter and process garnishments and union dues including setup and managing corresponding deduction payments to respective vendors.
• Process payroll inputs related to leave of absence, tuition reimbursements, vacation payouts, and other related items.
• Manage on-demand process by processing on-demand checks for employees and maintain a database of these transactions.
• Assist with Workday auditing for payroll processing and reconciliation.
• Calculate and enter the partial accrual for Vacation for terminating employees ahead of final paycheck.
• Monitor rejected direct deposits, inactivate accounts, and communicate with employees about next steps.
• Provide worktags to Accounting for stop payments, dropped direct deposits, rejected direct deposits, stale dated checks, etc.
• Validate payroll entries for accurateness and appropriateness.
• Assist with tax treaty entry and renewal processing.
• Adjust employee's 'Work' state and state tax withholding based on flexible work agreement in Workday.
• Process year-end tax documents including mailing and maintenance of tax documents, W-2's and 1042-S forms.
• Assist with responding to tax notices.

Requirements

• High school diploma
• 1-3 years of experience
• Familiarity with general accounting principles
• Experience in data collection, entry, and reporting with great attention to detail and confidentiality
• Exquisite math and numerical skills
• Outstanding organizational and time management skills
• Excellent customer service skills and communication abilities with aptitude in problem-solving.

Benefits

• Robust retirement match
• Wellness perks
• Tuition assistance
• Paid time off
• Health insurance
• Life and long-term disability insurance
• Flexible spending accounts