Payroll Specialist - Finance & Risk Management

pimacounty; Tucson (AZ); On-site; USD 50,000 - 67,000; Full time

Job summary

Pima County's Finance & Risk Management Department seeks a Payroll Specialist to join our payroll team in Tucson, AZ. You will audit time cards, process bi-weekly payroll for nearly 7,000 employees, and ensure compliance with Federal and State laws and Merit System Rules.

You will provide customer service to employees and vendors and assist with year-end documentation. The in-office role is based in Tucson, not remote, and the department cannot sponsor visas.

Qualifications

• Associate degree or higher in accounting or closely related field.
• Relevant payroll experience preferred or substitutions allowed.
• Experience with payroll laws and merit system rules is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Process bi-weekly payroll transactions in the County's payroll system according to guidelines.
• Review timesheets and payroll entries for completeness and policy compliance.
• Prepare payroll-related journal entries and reconciliations as directed by senior staff.

Skills

Customer service

Attention to detail

Communication

Education

Associate's degree in accounting or related field

Tools

Workday

ADP

Kronos

PeopleSoft

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Job Description Summary Department - Finance & Risk Management Job Description OPEN UNTIL FILLED

Job Type: Classified

Job Classification: 5701 - Payroll Specialist - Finance

Salary Grade: 8

Pay Range

• Hiring Range: $49,878 - $58,635 Annually
• Pay Range: $49,878 - $67,371 Annually

Range Explanation:Hiring Range is an estimate of where you can receive an offer. The actual salary offer will carefully consider a wide range of factors, including your skills, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, training, and internal equity.Pay Range is the entire compensation range for the position.

The first review of applications will be on 10/09/2026 .

The Pima County Department of Finance & Risk Management is seeking a motivated and skilled professional to join our Payroll team as a Payroll Specialist. This position assists in processing bi-weekly payroll for nearly 7,000 employees. You will audit time cards by following Federal and State payroll laws as well as County Merit System Rules and Administrative procedures, adjust leave accruals as needed, ensure accurate employee payouts, and provide customer service to our employees and vendors.

If you take pride in your work, enjoy challenges, and appreciate a collaborative environment, this may be a great opportunity for you to join our team.

This is an in-office position located in Tucson, AZ, and cannot be remote. The Finance & Risk Management Department is unable to provide visa sponsorship for this position.

Essential Functions:

• Processes bi-weekly payroll transactions by entering and verifying employee pay data in the County's payroll system following established guidelines;
• Reviews timesheets and payroll entries for completeness and compliance with applicable policies and procedures;
• Prepares basic payroll-related journal entries and reconciliations as directed by senior staff;
• Assists with compiling payroll data used in monthly, quarterly, and annual summaries;
• Provides routine support to departmental staff and system users by answering basic payroll-related questions or referring them to the appropriate resource;
• Reviews manual payroll warrant requests for completeness and routes for approval and processing;
• Assists with year-end payroll documentation by organizing files and assembling routine reports;
• Follows updates to payroll procedures as provided by higher-level staff and assists with implementing routine changes;
• Runs standard payroll reports to verify data entry accuracy and flags discrepancies for review;
• Performs account verifications related to payroll and reports unresolved issues to senior or supervisory staff.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Associate's degree from an accredited college or university with a major in accounting or closely related field as determined by the department head at the time of recruitment.
• (Relevant experience and/or education from an accredited college or university may be substituted.)
• Qualifying education and experience must be clearly documented in the "Education" and "Work Experience" sections of the application. Do not substitute a resume for your application or write "see resume" on your application.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Minimum two (2) years experience in payroll operations, including but not limited to processing electronic timecards, applying human resource policies to time and attendance records, reviewing and adjusting employee accrual balances, and experience related to payroll taxes, filings and regulatory compliance.
• Minimum two (2) years experience using electronic payroll systems such as Workday, ADP, Kronos, PeopleSoft, or comparable platforms.
• Minimum one (1) year experience using Microsoft Excel, including basic data entry, formatting, and spreadsheet calculations.
• Minimum one (1) year experience in customer service, communicating and resolving inquiries in a professional setting.

Selection Procedure:

Pima County Human Resources Department reserves the right to admit to the selection process only those candidates that meet the minimum qualifications. All applications will be assessed based on an evaluation of the listed education and experience. Candidates meeting the minimum qualifications may be further evaluated/scored against any advertised Preferred Qualifications. The hiring authority will interview and select the successful candidate from a referral list provide