PAYROLL AND TIME TRACKING ANALYST

City of Worcester; Worcester (MA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Worcester is seeking a Payroll and Time Tracking Analyst to join the Human Resources Department. The role focuses on leading complex payroll processing in Workday and ensuring timely, accurate pay for all employees.

You will collaborate with HR and Finance, maintain payroll reports, test configurations, and support integrations with time tracking, benefits, and absence management. Bilingual applicants are encouraged; in-person role at City offices.

Qualifications

• Experience with end-to-end payroll processing in Workday or comparable systems.
• Ability to process payroll for multiple employee groups across all pay frequencies.
• Knowledge of gross-to-net calculations, retroactive adjustments, and payroll accounting.
• Familiarity with federal, state, and local payroll laws, wage/hour rules, and union contracts.
• Experience with payroll compliance, audits, controls, and documentation.

Responsibilities

• Lead and execute end-to-end payroll processing in Workday for multiple employee groups.
• Validate gross-to-net calculations and manage retroactive adjustments.
• Research and resolve complex payroll discrepancies and corrections.
• Serve as a Workday Payroll SME, maintaining pay components and assisting with testing and improvements.
• Maintain and run Workday payroll reports, dashboards, and calculated fields.
• Assist with payroll configuration testing and upgrades.
• Assist with payroll-related integrations, including time tracking, benefits, absence and finance.
• Audit payroll compliance with laws and union agreements; support audits.
• Conduct payroll reconciliations and variance analyses.
• Prepare and run custom payroll reports to identify trends and discrepancies.
• Work with departments to review and correct discrepancies.
• Assist with W-2, ACA reporting and year-end balancing.
• Serve as secondary escalation for payroll, time tracking, and benefits issues.

Skills

Workday Payroll

Payroll processing

Pay frequencies

W-2 reporting

ACA reporting

Payroll compliance

Workday SME

Time tracking integration

Job description

PAYROLL AND TIME TRACKING ANALYST

DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
CITY OF WORCESTER

The City of Worcester is seeking qualified applicants for the position of Payroll and Time Tracking Analyst within the Payroll Division of the Human Resources Department. Under the direction of the Director of Payroll and Time Tracking, this position is responsible for leading and performing complex payroll processing and analysis for the City of Worcester using the Workday Human Capital Management (HCM) and Payroll system. The Payroll and Time Tracking Analyst serves as a subject matter expert in Workday Payroll, municipal payroll regulations, collective bargaining agreements, and applicable state and federal laws. This position is an in-person position that will serve as the primary liaison between HR, Finance and departmental stakeholders for payroll related matters. This role will work closely with the Director of Payroll and Time Tracking to ensure accurate and timely pay for all employees.

Bilingual applicants are encouraged to apply.

ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS:

• Lead and execute end-to-end payroll processing in Workday for multiple employee groups, including weekly, biweekly, semi, monthly and supplemental payrolls
• Validate gross-to-net calculations and manage retroactive adjustments
• Research and resolve complex payroll discrepancies and corrections
• Serve as a Workday Payroll subject matter expert (SME), maintaining pay components, assisting with testing, troubleshooting, and continuous system improvements
• Maintain and run Workday payroll reports, custom reports, calculated fields, and dashboards to support operational and compliance needs
• Assist with payroll configuration review, testing and validation related to upgrades/enhancements
• Assist with payroll-related integrations, including time tracking, benefits, absence and finance
• Audit for payroll compliance with federal, state, and local laws, including tax regulations, union agreements, wage and hour laws, and reporting requirements
• Support audits by internal and external entities and respond to initial payroll-related inquiries
• Conduct detailed payroll reconciliations and variance analyses, provide feedback
• Prepare & run custom payroll reports to analyze payroll data to identify trends, and discrepancies
• Work with departments to review and correct any discrepancies found
• Assist with W-2, ACA reporting and year end balancing
• Serve as the secondary escalation point for payroll, time tracking, and benefits issues, stepping in when frontline or customer service staff cannot resolve a matter. Provide guidance to team members and departmental HR contacts on payroll processes and Workday functionality

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• Knowledgeable in Workday Payroll end‑to‑end processing or similar software
• Ability to process payroll across multiple employee groups and all pay frequencies, including weekly, biweekly, semi‑monthly, monthly, and supplemental cycles
• Knowledgeable in gross‑to‑net payroll calculations, retroactive pay adjustments, and payroll accounting concepts
• Knowledgeable of federal, state, and local payroll laws, including wage and hour regulations, tax rules, and union contract requirements
• Knowledgeable of payroll compliance and audit standards, including internal controls and documentation practices
• Knowledgeable in payroll‑related integrations, including time tracking, benefits, absence management, and finance
• Experience in year‑end payroll processes, including W‑2, ACA reporting, and year‑end balancing
• Reconciliation and variance analysis methodologies for payroll data