Senior Payroll Compliance Lead

St John WA Group; Western Australia; On-site; AUD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and Wellness reimbursement

Leave loading 17.5%

Corporate uniform

Salary packaging and novated leasing

Discounts on first aid equipment

Complimentary First Aid Training

Ambulance cover

Job summary

St John WA seeks a Senior Payroll Compliance Officer to join the Finance team in Belmont on a permanent full-time basis. The role focuses on building a dedicated Payroll Compliance function, strengthening standards, governance and technical capability across the organisation.

Reporting to the Payroll Manager, you will lead audits, complex investigations and continuous improvement initiatives while supporting payroll transformation projects planned for 2028, ensuring accuracy and compliance

Qualifications

• 5+ years payroll experience within a medium to large/complex organisation.
• Strong knowledge of payroll legislation, Awards, Enterprise Agreements, taxation, superannuation and payroll best practice.
• Ability to interpret complex employment conditions and payroll rules.
• Experience conducting payroll audits, reconciliations and complex investigations.
• Analytical and problem-solving skills with ability to identify trends and improvements.
• Experience developing and maintaining payroll procedures and review processes.
• Proven ability to mentor, coach and support others in payroll.
• Attention to detail, accountability and continuous improvement.
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Payroll qualifications and/or ongoing professional development in payroll/finance will be highly regarded.

Responsibilities

• Lead payroll compliance reviews, auditing activities and quality assurance processes.
• Interpret and apply complex Awards, Enterprise Agreements, legislation and employment conditions.
• Investigate complex payroll matters including overpayments, underpayments and back-pay calculations.
• Conduct payroll reviews, reconciliations and exception reporting to identify trends and risks.
• Support internal and external audits with reconciliations, documentation and audit responses.
• Develop, review and maintain payroll procedures, work instructions and documentation.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen payroll controls and data integrity.
• Prepare and review payroll reporting to support statutory and business requirements.
• Provide technical guidance, coaching and support to payroll team members.
• Contribute to payroll transformation initiatives and continuous improvement projects.
• Provide payroll operational support to support business continuity.

Skills

Payroll compliance

Audits & reconciliations

Analytical skills

Stakeholder engagement

Coaching & mentoring

Attention to detail

Legislation knowledge

Chris21 experience

Education

Payroll qualifications/PD

Tools

Chris21

Job description

St John WA seeks a Senior Payroll Compliance Officer to join the Finance team in Belmont on a permanent full-time basis. The role focuses on building a dedicated Payroll Compliance function, strengthening standards, governance and technical capability across the organisation.

Reporting to the Payroll Manager, you will lead audits, complex investigations and continuous improvement initiatives while supporting payroll transformation projects planned for 2028, ensuring accuracy and compliance