Payroll Manager

Our client, a leading entertainment giant, is seeking a hands-on Manager, Union Payroll who is a passionate, people-focused, action-oriented leader who will foster proactive collaboration with all internal and external business partners and positively interact with employees at all levels of the organization to join their Payroll Shared Services team.

The Manager, Union Payroll will lead, direct, and coordinate all the activities of the Union Payroll team responsible for the preparation, processing, and distribution of accurate and timely paychecks to weekly and bi-weekly union and non-union freelance employees across multiple divisions, multiple unions, multiple companies and departments working in most US states. The Manager, Union Payroll will drive process standardization, automation, and continuous process improvement while ensuring compliance with SOX controls, collective bargaining agreements, and federal, state, and local regulations.

This is a hybrid role requiring a minimum of two days per week working onsite in the NY office.

A SNAPSHOT OF YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead, direct, and coordinate all activities of Union Payroll Team supporting divisions to ensure the successful, accurate, and timely processing of weekly and bi-weekly union and freelance employees in accordance with collective bargaining agreements and in compliance with applicable policies and federal, state and local regulations
• Lead with a one-team approach in dealing with internal and external stakeholder queries via seamless cross-functional and cross-divisional collaboration, consistent with the corporation’s philosophy
• Effectively manage the delivery of excellent customer service; anticipate issues, and proactively develop solutions
• Create and use metrics to benchmark performance and improve service delivery
• Take charge of escalations, directing the Union Payroll team and guiding other departments in corrective actions
• Implement workable and scalable solutions to business issues/problems
• Work with business partners to establish and adhere to payroll schedules to ensure data required for payroll processing is received in a timely manner and that all key processing deadlines are met
• Ensure the Union Payroll Team is knowledgeable in union pay and paid time off rules and the timekeeping system and can address employee questions as needed
• Ensure the Union Payroll Team is trained in how to use the time and attendance and payroll systems effectively
• Plan, develop, and implement forward-looking payroll processes/procedures and revise current processes/procedures to continuously seek improvement, improve accuracy, create optimal efficiency, and provide best-in-class customer service to our employees
• Develop and maintain Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for all payroll processes to ensure complete, accurate, and up-to-date depiction of processes
• Develop and maintain excellent cross-collaborative working relationships with key functional partners including, Labor Relations, HR, IT, and Legal
• Coach, mentor, and provide development opportunities to team members to drive employee engagement and to optimize operational and service excellence to create a deeper bench of experienced talent
• Maintain knowledge of federal, state, and local wage and hour and tax regulations by studying existing and new legislation

WHAT YOU WILL NEED

• 5 years of relevant experience leading Payroll and related processes for a large volume of employees (including a remote workforce) in a complex and rapidly changing multi-state, multi-entity organization; and at least five of those years have been in a relevant media/entertainment industry union payroll environment, preferably at another major studio
• Experience managing Payroll for employees covered by the IBEW, IATSE, AFTRA, and/or NABET collective bargaining agreements
• Adept in ambiguous situations, adaptable to changing priorities while effectively managing multiple commitments, at times on tight deadlines
• Strong working knowledge of FLSA, federal, state, and local wage and hour and tax regulations
• Intermediate to advanced Excel (V-Lookup and Pivot Tables)
• Strategic mindset coupled with the ability and willingness to roll up sleeves where necessary and desire to constantly improve the status quo
• Demonstrated ability to build and manage highly collaborative and effective teams supporting multiple companies/business units, with a commitment to a culture of collaboration, performance, transparency, and integrity
• Ability to communicate with precision, ensuring a clear conveyance of identified problems, proposed resolutions, and recommended courses of action