HR Specialist – Payroll & Benefits

ASE is assisting a member who is looking for an HR Specialist to manage payroll and benefits administration. This role is a good fit for someone who is detail-oriented, handles confidential information with discretion, and enjoys working with data. You will run payroll accurately and on time and administer the company's benefit programs. You will also be a reliable resource for employees, management, accounting, and outside providers.

Key Responsibilities

Payroll

• Prepare payroll calculations and coordinate each payroll with the payroll service provider.
• Process payroll changes, including tax exemptions, hours for partial pay periods, benefit and insurance deductions, 401(k) contributions and company match, department transfers, pay increases, and adjustments.
• Verify payroll before and after processing, resolve discrepancies, and direct the issuance of direct deposit payments.
• Provide payroll reports to Accounting for reconciliation, including summaries of earnings, taxes, deductions, and payroll liabilities.
• Answer payroll questions on a confidential, need-to-know basis, and protect payroll data and records.
• Stay current on tax and legislative changes from the payroll service provider. Communicate to management any changes that could affect budget forecasts.

Benefits

• Process benefit enrollments and changes through insurance carriers and the payroll service provider.
• Verify and submit monthly benefit invoices to Accounting for timely premium payments. Resolve invoice discrepancies with carriers and payroll providers, and communicate resolutions to employees as needed.
• Assist employees with insurance claims, including providing contact information and acting as the liaison between employees, brokers, and carriers.
• Administer annual open enrollment and enrollment changes, and maintain the employee database with strict confidentiality and security.
• Provide current and forecasted participation analysis for the insurance broker's annual quotes.
• Stay current on benefit updates from brokers and carriers. Communicate important changes to employees and to management, particularly changes that could affect budget forecasts.

Additional HR Support

• Support HR and Administration as assigned, including job descriptions, staffing, employee relations, and employee training and development.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience processing and administering payroll and benefit programs
• Associate's degree in an applied business field or equivalent experience required; Bachelor's degree preferred
• Strong attention to detail, accuracy, and discretion with confidential employee data
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills for working with cross-functional teams and management, and with payroll providers and insurance carriers
• Proficiency with Microsoft Windows applications, including Excel
• Reporting skills and an understanding of General Ledger accounts, including compiling payroll reports for bank reconciliations
• Ability to reconcile insurance invoices against benefit enrollments and changes
• Strong organizational skills for managing payroll and benefit data and record-keeping
• Experience in an international business culture is a plus