Fiscal Assistant

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; Harrisburg (Dauphin County); On-site; USD 42,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is seeking a Fiscal Assistant for the State Employees' Retirement System (SERS) Benefits Determination Division in Harrisburg. You will work with numbers, perform data entry and ledger updates, and support member inquiries on checks, deposits, and tax forms.

The role emphasizes accuracy, timely reconciliation, and collaboration with Treasury staff, with a six-month telework period followed by a hybrid schedule. Equal opportunity employer.

Qualifications

• Two years of experience performing bookkeeping or clerical accounting work.
• An associate degree in accounting or business administration including six credits in accounting.
• Any equivalent combination of experience and training.

Responsibilities

• Payment Reconciliation: Review reports, compare payment data, and identify issues that require follow-up
• Record Updating: Post changes to member accounts, stop payments, and correct discrepancies
• Member Support: Respond to inquiries about checks, direct deposits, tax forms, and account updates
• Issue Resolution: Investigate returned or missing payments and coordinate next steps with Treasury staff
• Tax Form Assistance: Assist with the preparation, review, and reconciliation of IRS 1099-R reports

Skills

Bookkeeping

Clerical accounting

Attention to detail

Education

Associate degree in accounting or business administration with six accounting credits

Job description

The Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System (SERS) is seeking a friendly, detailed oriented person to join our Benefits Determination Division team as a Fiscal Assistant. If you enjoy working with numbers and derive satisfaction from assisting others, this may be the job for you! Read on for more details.

This Fiscal Assistant position researches member account and payment data; enters and updates member and ledger data in the computer system; communicates with members, external organizations, and other SERS program areas regarding the issuance redeposit, or stoppage of member payments/checks, as well as the verification of member data; and reviews various reports and initiates actions to stop, reissue, or redeposit payments and checks based on report data.

Key responsibilities as a Fiscal Assistant include:

• Payment Reconciliation: Review reports, compare payment data, and identify issues that require follow-up
• Record Updating: Post changes to member accounts, stop payments, and correct discrepancies
• Member Support: Respond to inquiries about checks, direct deposits, tax forms, and account updates
• Issue Resolution: Investigate returned or missing payments and coordinate next steps with Treasury staff
• Tax Form Assistance: Assist with the preparation, review, and reconciliation of IRS 1099-R reports

Interested in learning more? Additional details can be found in the position description.

About SERS: Established in 1923, SERS is one of the nation's oldest retirement plans for public employees and manages the pension benefits of more than 246,000 employees and retirees for 96 public sector employers. In 2025, SERS paid more than $4.0 billion in benefits and managed nearly $50 billion in assets. Additional information is available at www.SERS.pa.gov.

Our mission is to prepare our members and participants to achieve financial security in retirement. We achieve this through focusing on our mission, acting ethically and with integrity, empowering our members, embracing innovation, fostering life work balance, modeling an inclusive and respectful workplace, valuing and developing team members, collaborating, and finding joy in our work.

SERS is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all qualified individuals to our team. We are committed to an inclusive and respectful work environment that fosters personal and professional growth, embraces the contributions of all team members, and leverages diversity in people, ideas, and experiences to achieve our highest potential.

Work Schedule and Additional Information:

• Full-time employment, 37.5-hour work week, Monday through Friday.
• Work hours are 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM with a one-hour unpaid meal period
• Telework: After a six-month training period, you may have the opportunity to work from home part-time (hybrid telework schedule), up to three days per week, depending on operational needs and progress in learning assigned tasks. In order to telework, you must have a securely configured high-speed internet connection and work from an approved location inside Pennsylvania. If you are unable to telework, you must work on-site at the work location specified in this job posting. Telework arrangements are subject to change. Additional details may be provided during the interview.
• Salary: In some cases, the starting salary may be non-negotiable.
• You will receive further communication regarding this position via email. Check your email, including spam/junk folders, for these notices.

QUALIFICATIONS

Minimum Experience and Training Requirements:

• Two years of experience performing bookkeeping or clerical accounting work; or
• An associate degree in accounting or business administration including or supplemented by six credits in accounting; or
• Any equivalent combination of experience and training.
• Applicants will be considered to have met the educational requirements once they are within 3 months of graduating with a qualifying degree/credit.

Other Requirements:

• You must meet the PA residency requirement. For more information on ways to meet PA residency requirements, follow the link and click on Residency Guidelines.
• You must be able to perform essential job functions.

Legal Requirement:

• You must pass a background investigation.

Veterans:

• Pennsylvania law (51 Pa. C.S. §7103) provides employment preference for qualified veterans for appointment to many state and local government jobs. To learn more about employment preferences for veterans, go to www.pa.gov/agencies/employment/how-to-apply.html and click on Veterans.

Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS):

• 711 (hearing and speech disabilities or other individuals).

If you are contacted for an interview and need accommodations due to a disability, please discuss your request for accommodations with the interviewer in advance of your interview date.

The Commonwealth is an equal employment opportunity employer and is committed to a diverse workforce. The Commonwealth values inclusion as we seek to recruit, develop, and retain the most qualified people to serve the citizens of Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religious creed, ancestry, union membership, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, AIDS or HIV status, disability, or any other categories protected by applicable federal or state law. All diverse candidates are encouraged to apply.

• Completing the application, including all supplemental questions, serves as your exam for this position. No additional exam is required at a test center (also referred to as a written exam).
• Your score is based on the detailed information you provide on your application and in response to the supplemental questions.
• Your score is valid for this specific posting only.
• You must provide complete and accurate information or:
  • your score may be lower than deserved.
  • you may be disqualified.
• You may only apply/test once for this posting.
• Your results will be provided via email.