Payroll & Benefits Specialist
Location: Beaverton, OR
Salary: $70,000 – $76,000
This position serves as the primary payroll and benefits administrator across multiple affiliated legal entities supporting approximately 200 employees in 10+ states. Based in Beaverton, Oregon, the Payroll and Benefits Specialist executes full-cycle multi-state payroll, manages benefit enrollments and carrier reconciliations, and coordinates closely with Human Resources, Finance, brokers, and external vendors.
Operating with a high degree of ownership and confidentiality, this role balances technical payroll processing and general ledger reconciliations with direct employee support. The position requires approximately 30% overnight travel to another operational facility out of state, aligned around key payroll cycles, year-end deadlines, and open enrollment periods.
Key Responsibilities
- Multi-State Full-Cycle Payroll: Process and validate regular and off-cycle payrolls across three companies and up to 10+ states, ensuring accurate calculations for earnings, tax withholdings, garnishments, bonuses, commissions, and final pay.
- Benefits Administration & Carrier Reconciliations: Administer enrollments, qualifying life events, and terminations for medical, dental, vision, 401(k), FSA, and HSA plans; audit monthly carrier invoices against payroll deductions and resolve billing discrepancies.
- Payroll Accounting & Reconciliations: Reconcile payroll registers, general ledger postings, tax liabilities, retirement contributions, and benefit accounts in coordination with Finance.
- Compliance & Tax Reporting: Oversee multi-state state/local tax registrations, unemployment accounts, wage-and-hour compliance, and year-end reporting, including W-2 and Form 1095-C reconciliation.
- Timekeeping & HRIS Administration: Audit time and attendance records, maintain employee master data across supported HRIS platforms, and support onboarding/offboarding workflows.
- Employee & Vendor Relations: Serve as the primary point of contact for employee payroll or benefit inquiries; manage day-to-day coordination with payroll software vendors, benefit brokers, and insurance carriers.
Requirements
- Minimum of 3 years of full-cycle payroll processing and multi-state benefits administration experience.
- Intermediate to advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel (e.g., VLOOKUPs, pivot tables, data reconciliation formulas) and HRIS softwares.
- Experience managing multi-state payroll compliance, state tax withholdings, and local payroll regulations across multiple jurisdictions.
- Demonstrated ability to maintain strict confidentiality when handling sensitive salary, medical, and personal identifiers.
- Strong mathematical ability to calculate gross-to-net pay, retroactive adjustments, fringe benefits, and complex deduction schedules.
- Valid driver's license and physical ability to travel regionally by air
- Location & Work Structure: Based in Beaverton, Oregon, on a hybrid schedule (4 days on-site, 1 day work-from-home).
Compensation & Schedule
- Work Schedule: Full-time, Beaverton-based office schedule with 1 work-from-home day per week after 90 days
- Travel Requirement: Approximately 30% overnight travel, primarily to an out-of-state operational facility
- Professional Environment: Supportive office environment with exposure to corporate HR, Finance, and site leadership