Payroll and Benefits Specialist

Whisper Aero • Crossville, TN

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Payroll and Benefits Specialist reports to the Head of People and owns accurate, timely payroll administration and dependable benefits operations across the employee lifecycle in a U.S. Government contracting environment. This role serves as a trusted resource for employees and managers, maintains payroll and benefits data in the HRIS, and administers the company’s timekeeping processes and related internal controls to support compliant labor charging. The specialist reviews and reconciles time records, payroll, and labor-distribution data; supports required reporting and audits; and helps ensure compliance with applicable contract requirements, company policies, and federal, state, and local requirements, including DCAA expectations for reliable time records and charges to the proper cost objective. The ideal candidate combines strong attention to detail, sound judgment, discretion with confidential information, and a service-oriented approach in a fast-moving environment.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in human resources, accounting, business administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible payroll and benefits administration experience, including hands-on ownership of recurring payroll cycles.
• Ability to prioritize competing work, document processes, and collaborate effectively with People, Finance, managers, employees, and external partners.
• Working knowledge of payroll practices, payroll taxes, wage-and-hour requirements, benefits eligibility, and related recordkeeping obligations.
• Working knowledge of Government contracting timekeeping and labor-charging controls, including accurate recording of hours, authorized charge codes, supervisor approvals, documented corrections, segregation of direct and indirect labor, and reconciliation of timekeeping, payroll, and labor-distribution records.
• Experience with payroll, HRIS, timekeeping, and benefits administration systems; proficiency with spreadsheets, including reconciliations, lookups, and data validation.
• Demonstrated ability to review detailed information, identify discrepancies, perform accurate calculations, and meet fixed deadlines.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex pay and benefit topics in clear, employee-friendly language.
• High degree of discretion, integrity, customer focus, and sound judgment when handling confidential or sensitive information.

Nice To Haves

• Payroll or benefits certification, such as FPC, CPP, CEBS, or SHRM-CP.
• Experience administering multi-state payroll and benefits in a growing, distributed, manufacturing, aerospace, or technology organization.
• Experience with payroll tax registrations, audits, retirement-plan administration, annual enrollment, ACA reporting, or leave coordination.
• Experience implementing or optimizing HRIS, payroll, timekeeping, or benefits systems and documenting scalable processes.
• Experience administering a DCAA-compliant or DCAA-audited timekeeping and labor-accounting environment for a federal Government contractor, including support for labor floorchecks, employee interviews, accounting-system reviews, or incurred-cost audits.
• Experience supporting the design, administration, and ongoing review of compensation programs, including job leveling and salary bands, market benchmarking, annual compensation cycles, bonus and incentive policies, pay-equity analysis, and recommendations that promote competitive, internally consistent, and financially sustainable pay practices.
• Familiarity with accounting fundamentals, general-ledger mapping, payroll journals, and financial controls.

Responsibilities

• Process payroll accurately and on schedule, including reviewing time records, earnings, deductions, taxes, benefits, bonuses, reimbursements, garnishments, and other adjustments.
• Administer DCAA-aligned timekeeping and labor-charging processes for a Government contractor, ensuring employees record all hours worked accurately, contemporaneously, and against the authorized contract, project, indirect account, or other cost objective.
• Monitor timely employee submission and supervisor approval of timesheets; review late, missing, incomplete, or unusual entries and follow established escalation procedures.
• Maintain documented controls for timesheet corrections and adjustments, including employee explanations, required approvals, audit trails, and prohibition of unsupported or retroactive changes.
• Reconcile timekeeping records to payroll and labor-distribution reports; investigate variances and help ensure direct and indirect labor costs are consistently classified and charged to the proper cost objective.
• Maintain timekeeping policies, charge-code authorizations, employee acknowledgments, training records, and supporting documentation; train employees and supervisors on accurate labor charging and their individual responsibilities.
• Support DCAA, DCMA, customer, and internal reviews of the timekeeping and labor-accounting system, including labor floorchecks or employee interviews; promptly produce requested procedures, timesheets, employee and location listings, charge authorizations, payroll reconciliations, and labor-distribution records.
• Audit payroll inputs and outputs; investigate and resolve discrepancies; prepare payroll registers, period-end reports, and account reconciliations in partnership with Finance.
• Maintain complete and accurate employee payroll and benefits records for hires, transfers, compensation changes, leaves, and separations.
• Administer employee health, welfare, retirement, and leave programs, including enrollments, qualifying life events, eligibility changes, terminations, and vendor file review.
• Serve as the first point of contact for employee and manager questions about pay, deductions, taxes, timekeeping, leave, and benefit plans; explain programs clearly and escalate sensitive matters appropriately.
• Coordinate with payroll providers, benefit carriers, brokers, and other vendors to resolve issues, monitor service levels, and support renewals and annual enrollment.
• Support payroll tax filings, year-end activities, W-2 processing, benefit reporting, audits, and required federal, state, and local submissions.
• Monitor changes in payroll, tax, wage-and-hour, leave, and benefits requirements; recommend process or policy updates to the Head of People.
• Maintain data integrity across the HRIS, payroll, timekeeping, and benefits platforms; produce recurring and ad hoc reports and identify opportunities to improve workflows and controls.
• Create and maintain employee communications, process documentation, calendars, and standard operating procedures; train employees and managers on timekeeping and self-service tools.
• Protect confidential employee information and follow internal controls, record-retention requirements, and privacy practices.
• Partner with the Head of People and Finance on benefits planning, payroll budgeting, vendor management, and other People Operations priorities.

Benefits

• Top-tier Benefits: Employee-first focused comprehensive benefits package, minimum of 90% employer-paid plans for employees and dependents with optional HSA/FSA account offerings
• PTO & Federal Holidays: Starting at four weeks of paid time off for vacation, sick, and personal days
• Competitive Salary: Value-based compensation, plus enjoy Tennessee’s no-income-tax life
• End of Year Bonuses: For eligible employees
• Beverages and snacks available
• Paid team meals based on office demands
• 401(k)
• Relocation Assistance
• Professional Development Stipend

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level