Payroll Specialist

Description

We are looking for a Payroll Specialist to join one of our clients based in Portland, Oregon in a contract-to-permanent capacity. This position is ideal for someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment, brings strong attention to detail, and can manage complex payroll activity across multiple states with confidence. The role supports a sizable employee population and requires a proactive, detail-focused individual who can balance accuracy, responsiveness, and excellent service.

Responsibilities:

- Process end-to-end payroll for a designated group of employees while maintaining accuracy and timeliness.

- Administer payroll across numerous U.S. states, researching state-specific rules as needed to resolve pay questions and ensure compliance.

- Review earnings such as hourly pay, salaries, commissions, and bonus payments, verifying calculations and investigating discrepancies before finalizing payroll.

- Track payroll exceptions, follow up on outstanding items, and maintain organized records in a high-volume environment.

- Provide responsive support to employees and internal stakeholders by addressing payroll inquiries with care and courtesy.

- Adapt to unique payroll scenarios and varied processing requirements, applying sound judgment when standard procedures do not fully apply.

Requirements

- At least 2 years of payroll experience, including full-cycle payroll processing.

- Hands-on experience managing payroll for employees in multiple states.

- Knowledge of payroll practices for varied compensation types, including hourly, salaried, commission-based, and bonus earnings.

- Experience with payroll platforms such as Dayforce, Paychex, Paylocity, or Paycom.

- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage heavy tracking and multiple exceptions.

- Excellent customer service and communication skills, with a proactive and flexible approach to problem-solving.

- California payroll processing experience is preferred.

Robert Half is the world's first and largest specialized talent solutions firm that connects highly qualified job seekers to opportunities at great companies. We offer contract, temporary and permanent placement solutions for finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal, and administrative and customer support roles.

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All applicants applying for U.S. job openings must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Benefits are available to contract/temporary professionals, including medical, vision, dental, and life and disability insurance. Hired contract/temporary professionals are also eligible to enroll in our company 401(k) plan. Visit  for more information.

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