HR Onboarding Specialist

Pine Street Inn•Boston, MA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The HR Onboarding Specialist manages the end-to-end pre-employment lifecycle, helping each incoming employee complete a welcoming, seamless, and compliant entry into Pine Street Inn. The role focuses on background screenings, education and employment verifications, and professional references, while partnering with Recruiting and using Paylocity and related HR systems to provide a high-touch candidate experience. Pine Street Inn is New England’s largest provider of services to individuals experiencing homelessness. Founded in 1969, it serves more than 2,000 people each day through emergency shelter, permanent supportive housing, street outreach, and employment and workforce development programs. Its mission is to provide a compassionate and safe environment and essential services while supporting people’s movement toward self-sufficiency and more stable lives. The organization uses technology to advance its mission, improve service delivery and operational efficiency, and support data-driven decisions. The position is scheduled for 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. It follows a hybrid working model, with on-site work three days per week and remote work two days per week. The role also participates in the HR Department’s Friday rotation, usually about one Friday every five to six weeks. The listed location is 434 Harrison Ave, Boston, Massachusetts. Salary is $60,000–$75,000 annually, depending on experience and relevant skill set.

Requirements

1–3 years of dedicated experience in employee onboarding, compliance coordination, or human resources operations in a fast-paced environment.
Hands-on experience with Paylocity, specifically its onboarding, recruiting, and HRIS modules, or closely related modern enterprise HR software.
Familiarity with state and federal laws governing background screenings and Massachusetts CORI clearance standards.
Exceptional empathetic communication skills, discretion in maintaining confidentiality, and strong customer-service skills.
Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, or a related discipline, or an equivalent combination of professional experience and targeted training.

Responsibilities

Initiate, track, and review comprehensive background profiles, including national criminal checks and Massachusetts CORI/SORI requirements.
Conduct education, employment history, and professional reference verifications to confirm regulatory and organizational eligibility.
Identify and discreetly flag potential compliance or background-check concerns to HR leadership.
Serve as a welcoming primary contact for future employees from offer acceptance through their first day.
Guide candidates through pre-employment steps and answer questions about documentation, timing, and system access.
Troubleshoot technical difficulties candidates encounter in the Paylocity onboarding module.
Coordinate handoffs between Recruiting and onboarding.
Provide Recruiters and the Director of Talent Acquisition with real-time updates and timeline visibility regarding candidate clearance status.
Create and maintain electronic employee files in Paylocity, track mandatory requirements, and keep records audit-ready.
Schedule, monitor, and track Pine Street Inn Occupational Health pre-employment requirements.
Use the Recruiting checklist to ensure required documents are collected before candidates are cleared for New Employee Orientation.
May source candidates using online job boards such as Indeed and/or LinkedIn.
Assist the Director of Talent Acquisition with planning and executing job fairs, hiring events, and talent attraction activities.