HR Associate

Overview

The Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN) is an environmental justice organization with deep roots in California’s Asian immigrant and refugee communities. Since 1993, APEN has built a membership base of Laotian refugees in Richmond and Chinese immigrants in Oakland, and more recently, Asian Americans in South Bay LA. Together, we have fought and won campaigns to make our communities healthier and just places where all people have the resources we need to live full, dignified lives.

We are growing our local roots and building power to make decisions at the state level that have real local impact. By building an organized movement, we’re leading a transition away from an extractive economy based on profit and pollution and toward local, healthy, and life-sustaining economies that benefit everyone.

HR Associate

Classification: Part-Time (20 hours per week), Non-Exempt, Work authorization is required

Compensation: $39.04 - $42.16 /hour

Location: Hybrid, work must be performed in one of our 3 geographies in California

Travel Requirements: 5% of time (includes local travel)

Reports To: HR Manager

Direct Reports: This role does not have supervisory responsibilities

The HR Associate at APEN will provide essential support to the organization’s HR functions, with responsibilities spanning personnel administration, recruitment, payroll, and benefits. This role helps to ensure a consistent and supportive employee experience while maintaining compliance with internal policies and external requirements. The HR Associate will play an active role in processing employee lifecycle activities—from recruitment and onboarding to leave coordination and offboarding—while supporting staff with training and policy implementation.

In collaboration with the HR Manager and Operations team, the HR Associate helps administer payroll, track timekeeping, and benefits programs, including insurance and retirement plans. This position requires strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills, and is critical in helping APEN maintain an equitable, values-aligned, transparent, and legally compliant workplace.

Finance and Benefits Administration (Approximately 50% of the role):

• Payroll And Timekeeping:
  Administer payroll changes and create staff memos (salary/time adjustments, deductions, etc) including special withholding info (garnishments, 401k, etc).
• Process payroll with payroll vendor per payroll schedule; update payroll with employee contributions to 401k accounts to appropriate vendors.
• Liaison to payroll company to address any questions, adjustments to staff payroll.
• Support implementation and tracking of lobbying rules and regulations to maintain APEN’s legal compliance with lobbying timekeeping.
• Create an annual payroll calendar for staff.
• Maintain secure payroll company and staff adjustments files.
• Collect timesheets and track vacation/sick time balance; maintain time codes for earned revenue contracts; submit reports to bookkeeper.

• Benefits Administration:
  Under the direction of the HR Manager, implement benefits administration.
• Work with HR Manager for annual 401k renewals and benefits open enrollment.
• Process paperwork and reports as needed for the HRA plan.

Personnel (Approximately 20% of the role):

• Reporting:
  Process IRS and EDD reporting (W-2 form, unemployment verifications, tax registration, provide employee/salary verification requested by outside parties).
• Work with HR Manager to train supervisors and staff on personnel policies.
• With consultation and direction from the HR Manager, manage various staff leaves (medical, unpaid, parental, etc). Follow up with verification from state entities as needed.
• Ensure compliance with Employee Handbook and Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Maintain personnel files.
• Support with staff offboarding procedures.

Recruitment and Selection (Approximately 15% of the role):

• Post and review job announcements, creating emails for the hiring committee to receive.
• Provide training for hiring managers. Work with the Operations team as needed.
• Lead new…