Payroll Officer

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

The Payroll Officer is responsible for the complex end of payroll operations, including payroll validation, reconciliations, controls, statutory and third-party obligations, the payroll costing interface with Finance, and time-and-attendance data governance. The role strengthens payroll resilience through documented procedures, cross-skilling and operational cover during peak periods, absence or transition.

• Process and support accurate weekly and monthly payroll runs within agreed payroll calendars and cut-offs.
• Validate payroll inputs, including engagements, terminations, transfers, promotions, rate changes, overtime, allowances, benefits, deductions and garnishees, ensuring that approved supporting documentation is in place.
• Calculate and verify complex payroll items such as retrospective and back-pay, wage-agreement increases, final payments, leave pay-outs, over payment recovery, ETI and tax directives.
• Review pre-run and post-run reports, investigate variances and resolve discrepancies before payment is released.

• Perform and evidence pre-run and post-run payroll control checks and reconciliations for every pay cycle.
• Prepare or review statutory submissions and third-party schedules, including PAYE, UIF, SDL, EMP
  201, EMP
  501, IRP5/IT3(a), COIDA, retirement and provident funds, medical aid, union dues, loans and garnishees.
• Maintain complete audit trails and apply segregation-of-duties and payroll authority requirements.
• Identify recurring errors, control gaps, payroll risks and potential fraud indicators, and accelerate these with recommended corrective action.

• Support payroll-to-general-ledger reconciliation and investigate costing, cost centre and allocation discrepancies with Finance.
• Provide labour cost, overtime and headcount data for variance analysis, budgeting and management reporting.
• Resolve payroll-related general ledger, bank and third-party payment queries within the month-end timetable.

• Support the accurate flow of time-and-attendance data into payroll, including hours, overtime, shifts, public holidays and absences.
• Monitor Jarrison or equivalent exception reports and elevate unapproved, late, missing or anomalous clockings to responsible line managers.
• Assist with configuration, testing and validation of pay, overtime, allowance and shift rules, including parallel runs and payroll export checks.
• Investigate system-related payroll issues with HRIS, IT, Operations and external service providers, and maintain process documentation and control checklists.

• Resolve payroll queries from employees, line managers, Human Capital, Finance, unions and service providers professionally and within agreed turnaround times.
• Explain payslips, deductions, tax, benefits, leave impacts and payroll corrections clearly and respectfully.
• Maintain strict confidentiality and elevate sensitive, disputed or precedent-setting matters to the Payroll Manager.

• Support payroll consolidation, pay-group migration, the Jarrison implementation, and the rollout of employee and manager self-service.
• Identify and eliminate duplicate checking, manual workarounds, recurring errors and post-pay corrections.
• Act as operational backup to the Payroll Manager during absence, leave or peak periods.
• Coach and cross-skill payroll colleagues, review complex or high-risk items, and ensure critical tasks are documented and can be performed by more than one person.

• Comply with Hulamin safety, health and environmental requirements and lead by example.
• Maintain secure, organised payroll records and confidential documentation in accordance with company policy and POPIA.