Senior Payroll & Compliance Specialist

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury; Christchurch; On-site; NZD 85,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury is seeking a Senior Payroll Officer (Legislation & Compliance) to ensure payroll processes meet legislative and organisational requirements, delivering accurate payments to staff. You will work with payroll, HR Shared Services, ACC and WellNZ, handling complex calculations and ensuring confidentiality.

Essential experience includes privacy, Holidays Act compliance, MECA provisions, and strong analytical skills.

Qualifications

• Relevant graduate or postgraduate qualification.
• Experience implementing Te Tiriti o Waitangi principles in practice.
• Strong payroll processing experience and understanding of payroll legislation.
• Sound knowledge of ACC payment legislation and the Holidays Act.
• Excellent attention to detail and high level of accuracy.
• Strong Microsoft Office skills, particularly Excel and Word.

Responsibilities

• Calculate work-related and non-work-related ACC payments and provide accurate information to external partners including Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and Wellnz.
• Support and coordinate multiple payroll runs to ensure timely and accurate payments.
• Load and maintain payroll data within the payroll system.
• Liaise with HR Shared Services teams to ensure smooth and accurate pay processing.
• Complete month-end and year-end payroll processes, including leave liability, general ledger reconciliation, unpaid days, and IR filing.
• Calculate and verify complex payroll transactions including final pays, back payments, overpayments, parental leave payments and leave cash-ups in accordance with the Holidays Act and relevant MECA agreements.
• Monitor payroll reports and undertake audit checks to ensure compliance and accuracy.
• Investigate and resolve payroll payment issues and discrepancies.
• Provide advice and respond to employee payroll queries with professionalism, empathy and confidentiality.
• Maintain effective working relationships with internal teams and external stakeholders.
• Assist with training, coordination and support of payroll team members.
• Ensure accurate data entry and adherence to deadlines.
• Support continuous improvement of payroll processes and compliance practices.

Skills

Payroll processing

Legislation compliance

Te Tiriti o Waitangi

Attention to detail

Confidentiality

Customer service

Communication

Excel

Word

Education

Graduate or postgraduate qualification

Tools

Payroll system

Job description

Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury is seeking a Senior Payroll Officer (Legislation & Compliance) to ensure payroll processes meet legislative and organisational requirements, delivering accurate payments to staff. You will work with payroll, HR Shared Services, ACC and WellNZ, handling complex calculations and ensuring confidentiality.

Essential experience includes privacy, Holidays Act compliance, MECA provisions, and strong analytical skills.