HR / Payroll Specialist

HouseMart; Honolulu (HI); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

HouseMart in Honolulu, Hawaii is seeking an HR/Payroll Specialist to manage day-to-day payroll processing, benefits reconciliation, and employee record maintenance. You will be the primary contact for pay and benefits inquiries, ensuring data integrity and compliance with federal and state laws.

The role requires strong HR and finance knowledge, experience with payroll systems (ADP preferred), and proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in HRM, business, accounting or related field.
• 2–4 years of HR, payroll or accounting experience.
• Experience with payroll processing and benefits administration.

Responsibilities

• Manage onboarding and offboarding processes in HRIS.
• Process bi-weekly payroll and reconcile payroll adjustments.
• Reconcile monthly benefit invoices against HRIS deductions.
• Maintain and audit employee records for compliance.

Skills

HRIS/Payroll

ADP experience

MS Office

Google Workspace

AI tools familiarity

Payroll processing

Data confidentiality

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR/Business

Tools

ADP Payroll System

HRIS platform

Job description

SUMMARY:

The HR/Payroll Specialist manages the day-to-day administration of payroll processing, benefit bill reconciliation, and employee record maintenance. This role serves as a primary point of contact for employee inquiries regarding pay and benefits, ensuring data integrity, compliance with federal and state laws, and seamless HR operations.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS :

• Employee Record Management
  • Administer onboarding and offboarding processes, including creating HRIS profiles, new hire processing, issuing access codes, and recording employment changes and terminations.
  • Maintain and update employee records in the HRIS, including leave status, benefit enrollments, tax withholdings, direct deposits, and wage deductions.
  • Organize and maintain digital and physical personnel files in compliance with federal and state regulations.
  • Determine benefit eligibility and proactively notify employees and managers regarding health plan enrollment and leave policies.
  • Fulfill authorized information requests from internal/external auditors and verified third parties.
  • Conduct periodic audits of HRIS data and maintain the company contact directory.
• Payroll Processing
  • Review, audit, and reconcile timesheets, wage computations, tax entries, and labor distributions to ensure total payroll accuracy.
  • Process bi-weekly payroll and distribute employee paychecks and earnings statements. Manage and reconcile payroll adjustments, retro-pay, reimbursements, and permanent or temporary deductions.
  • Provide timely, accurate answers to employee inquiries regarding payroll, benefits, deductions, and leave balances.
• Benefit Bill Reconciliation
  • Reconcile monthly benefit invoices (medical, dental, vision, life, disability) against HRIS deductions to ensure exact financial alignment.
  • Audit enrollment changes to verify that new hires, terminations, and qualifying life events match carrier billing.
  • Investigate and resolve billing variances directly with insurance carriers, HRBP and/or internal accounting teams to manage adjustments.
  • Track and resolve all benefit-related billing discrepancies within monthly deadlines.
• Other Duties
• Inventory Management: Coordinate the ordering, tracking, and distribution of company uniforms, employee name tags, and training cohort supplies to ensure seamless onboarding and brand consistency.
• Quarterly Compliance Reporting: Compile payroll and personnel data to prepare and submit the quarterly Multiple Worksite Report (MWR) in compliance with state and federal department of labor regulations.
• Annual Federal Reporting: Partner with the HR Administrator to gather, validate, and submit the annual EEO-1/EEOC report to ensure full regulatory compliance.
• Assist the HR department with implementing various company-wide initiatives, programs, and procedures.
• Clearly communicate company personnel policies, benefits, and procedures to current employees and job applicants.
• Stay informed on changing state wage-and-hour laws, employment laws, and compliance updates.
• Participate in administrative staff meetings and professional development seminars. Perform other related operational duties as assigned.

COMPETENCIES:

• Human Resources Capacity: Solid understanding of core HR and compliance principles.
• Customer/Client Focus: Strong service-oriented approach to handling employee inquiries.
• Ethical Conduct: Uncompromising commitment to maintaining strict confidentiality and data security.
• Personal Effectiveness: Excellent organizational, time-management, and prioritization skills.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY:

• This position has no direct supervisory responsibilities but provides guidance, support, and cross-training to peers within the department.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• This role operates in a professional office environment using standard equipment (computers, phones, copiers).

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

• Largely a sedentary role, but requires the physical ability to stand, bend, stool-step, and lift up to 20 lbs when managing physical files.

SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE & ABILITIES:

• HR & Finance Knowledge: Practical knowledge of compensation, benefits administration, payroll processing, and clerical systems.
• Communication: Exceptional active listening, verbal, and written communication skills.
• Critical Thinking: Strong mathematical capability with the ability to apply general rules to solve logic, data, or calculation errors.
• Technical Proficiency:
  • Advanced proficiency with a major HRIS/Payroll platform required; hands‑on experience with ADP is highly preferred but not required.
  • Strong command of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and Google Workspace.
  • Familiarity with—or willingness to learn—AI applications (e.g., Gemini, NotebookLM) and automated screening/sourcing tools.

EXPECTED HOURS OF WORK:

• Some flexibility in hours is allowed, but the employee must be available during office hours from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Must work 40 hours each week.

TRAVEL:

• Occasional local, neighbor island and U.S. mainland travel to various store locations may be required.
• Less than 10 days per year.

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management, Business Administration, Accounting, or a related field.
• Experience: 2–4 years of experience in human resources, payroll, or accounting; or an equivalent combined mix of education and experience.