Senior Payroll Analyst

Our client, an established organization in the Oil & Gas sector, is seeking a Senior Payroll Analyst to join their team. This role is responsible for ensuring accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processing for a substantial workforce, including union and non-union employees, while partnering with various departments to optimize payroll operations and compliance.

Salary + Additional Benefits:

• $95,000-$110,000 + Bonus
• Medical, Dental, Vision Insurance
• 401K – company match

Location: Deer Park, TX
Type of Position: Direct Hire

Responsibilities:

• Lead end-to-end payroll processing for union and non-union employees, ensuring timely, accurate, and compliant payroll execution in accordance with federal, state, local, and collective bargaining agreement requirements.
• Review, validate, and reconcile payroll transactions, including wages, overtime, shift differentials, bonuses, commissions, garnishments, and tax withholdings.
• Ensure accurate payroll tax reporting, filings, deposits, and compliance with applicable regulatory requirements.
• Manage payroll audits, quarter-end and year-end activities, including W-2 processing, payroll reconciliations, and reporting requirements.
• Prepare, analyze, and validate payroll reports pre- and post-processing to identify discrepancies and ensure data integrity.
• Administer employee payroll-related life cycle events, including new hires, transfers, promotions, leaves of absence, terminations, and employee status changes.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for employee, manager, and stakeholder inquiries related to payroll, taxes, wage calculations, and compliance matters.
• Partner with Finance to reconcile payroll accounts, labor allocations, accruals, and general ledger transactions.
• Coordinate with third-party payroll providers and external agencies to resolve payroll-related issues and ensure service excellence.
• Collaborate with HR, Finance, Information Technology, and external vendors to ensure effective payroll operations and data integrity.
• Support employee onboarding and offboarding activities by ensuring accurate payroll setup, maintenance, and final pay processing.
• Provide payroll and workforce data analysis, reporting, and insights to support business decisions, workforce planning, and operational initiatives.
• Participate in payroll system enhancements, upgrades, testing, implementations, and integrations.
• Lead or contribute to special projects related to payroll operations, HR compliance, data analytics, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders to align payroll operations with business objectives and employee needs.
• Ensure compliance with SOX, FLSA, IRS regulations, Department of Labor requirements, and all applicable federal, state, and local employment and wage laws.
• Maintain payroll policies, procedures, controls, and documentation to support audit readiness and operational consistency.
• Monitor legislative and regulatory changes impacting payroll administration and recommend necessary policy and process updates.
• Partner with applicable departments and external auditors to support compliance reviews, audits, investigations, and risk mitigation efforts.
• Analyze payroll processes to identify root causes of issues, implement corrective actions, and drive continuous process improvements.
• Identify and implement automation opportunities, system enhancements, and best practices to improve efficiency, accuracy, scalability, and service delivery.
• Ensure confidentiality and security of employee payroll and personal information in accordance with company policies and applicable regulations.
• Develop key performance metrics and reporting tools to monitor payroll accuracy, compliance, service levels, and operational effectiveness.
• Oversee the end-to-end integration of timekeeping data, pay group realignments, and historical adjustments resulting from mergers, acquisitions, or reorganizations, auditing complex pay structures (e.g., multi-tier shift differentials, premiums) to ensure precise payroll runs.
• Communicate effectively with employees, managers, vendors, and regulatory agencies in both written and verbal formats.
• Demonstrate commitment to ethics, confidentiality, and the protection of sensitive employee and company information.
• Manage payroll in multi-state environments and support payroll tax regulations, reporting, and filings.
• Support payroll reconciliation, audits, and year-end reporting activities (W-2s, quarterly, and annual filings).
• Administer garnishments, including child support, tax levies, creditor garnishments, and bankruptcy orders, ensuring compliance with federal and state laws.
• Partner with Finance and Accounting for payroll journal entries and general ledger reconciliation.
• Support improvements in payroll systems and participate in implementations, upgrades, testing, or process initiatives.
• Maintain knowledge of collective bargaining agreements and union payroll structures.
• Demonstrate strong Excel skills (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, formulas, data analysis) and proficiency with payroll and HRIS systems (e.g., UKG, ADP, Workday, SAP).
• Support a 401(k) recordkeeper transition, if applicable.
• Exhibit strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to troubleshoot complex payroll discrepancies.
• Communicate effectively across departments and with external vendors, maintaining professionalism and confidentiality at all times.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, or related field; equivalent experience considered.
• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) certification preferred.
• Minimum of 7-10 years of progressive payroll experience, including full-cycle payroll processing.
• Experience processing payroll in a multi-state environment preferred.
• Experience supporting both union and non-union employee populations required.
• Strong knowledge of payroll tax regulations, wage and hour laws, garnishments, and payroll compliance requirements.
• Experience preparing payroll reconciliations, audits, and year-end reporting activities, including W-2 processing.
• Proficiency with payroll and HRIS systems (e.g., UKG, ADP, Workday, SAP).
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, data analysis).
• Experience partnering with stakeholders and external vendors to resolve payroll issues and improve processes.
• Proven ability to maintain accuracy, confidentiality, and compliance in a fast-paced environment.
• Knowledge of collective bargaining agreements and union payroll structures.
• Strong analytical skills, troubleshooting capabilities, and the ability to manage complex pay structures.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain pay issues clearly to employees and leaders.
• Ability to work additional hours as needed to meet payroll deadlines, audits, system implementations, and year-end activities.
• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.
• Must possess or be able to obtain a TWIC card.

Due to the high volume of applications we typically receive, we regret that we are not able to personally respond to all applications. However, if you are invited to take the next step in the process, you will typically be contacted within one week of submitting your application. #LI-DNI