Payroll Accounting Manager

Bay Area Legal Aid (BayLegal) is a non-profit law firm. Our staff provide free civil legal services to individuals and families living in poverty in the San Francisco Bay Area. We provide services in seven Bay Area counties. We practice in multiple inter-related legal substantive areas to prevent and stop homelessness, increase economic stability, protect low-income consumers, expand access to healthcare, and enhance safety for survivors of interpersonal violence. Our clients include the working poor, families with children, foster youth, seniors, immigrants, veterans, individuals impacted by the criminal and juvenile legal systems, and persons with disabilities. The core of our community-based practice is working alongside our clients to protect their legal rights, resolve immediate crises and remove legal barriers to long-term stability and escaping poverty. BayLegal is also uniquely positioned to identify patterns of illegal practices and opportunities to protect our clients’ rights and increase efficiency and effectiveness of public services through broader advocacy and impact litigation, given our regional community-based service model and wide range of access points, including legal hotlines, six physical offices, community-based advocacy clinics, and intake points.  

BayLegal’s Finance Department: The Finance Department includes a Controller, and an Accounting Manager, a Senior Accountant, and three Accountants in charge of A/P, A/R and general accounting, and the Payroll Accounting Manager.  The Finance Department is located in BayLegal’s Central Administration offices in Oakland where they work in close coordination with BayLegal’s Human Resources and Grants & Contracts Departments to support the needs of the entire firm.  The firm is largely comprised of attorneys and staff supporting the provision of legal services, majority of whom are members of a union and thus payroll most comply with the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). BayLegal's Finance team uses Paycom as the payroll and HRIS system along with MIP, Microsoft Office and Excel for reporting and analyzing data. In addition to these systems, BayLegal uses a customized version of Salesforce for programmatic services, funding (majority of which are government grants) and timekeeping purposes.  

Position: This position is a managerial position within BayLegal’s Finance department and is primarily responsible for payroll and related accounting. This position is responsible for the daily operations of BayLegal’s payroll to ensure it is completed efficiently, timely, and in compliance with all applicable state and federal laws and requirements.  This position is responsible for identifying, recommending and implementing opportunities for increased efficiency, including automation and integration of BayLegal’s payroll, HR management and timekeeping. With increased automation and efficiency, this position will remain responsible for day-to-day payroll operations and any necessary updates and modifications to ensure ongoing compliance, integration, and efficiency. As capacity allows, this role will increasingly participate and be responsible for pieces of BayLegal’s financial forecasting and budgeting processes. Finance positions are not unionized.  

Key Responsibilities:   

• Ensures compliance in all areas of payroll management, confidentiality, and security of employee information.
• Reconcile all liability accounts and employee pay, including leave accruals, in compliance with IRS requirements and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States (US GAAP) applicable to nonprofit organizations.
• Reconciliation of timesheets produced in CRM platform (Salesforce) and imported into payroll system (Paycom) to ensure accurate accounting for billing by funding sources / earning codes and accurate processing of payable time.
• Oversee day-to-day payroll functions and compliance, including but not limited to:
  • Processing payroll on a bi-weekly cycle;
  • Monitoring and ensuring accuracy of payroll accounting data inputs and outputs;
  • Ensuring compliance with current IRS, California EDD, and Legal Services Corporation (LSC) compliance requirements and reporting;
  • Ensuring consistency with US GAAP; and
  • Reconciling general ledger accounts to assure accuracy.  
• Prepare payroll-related accounting and tax reports, with supporting records and reports, assessment requirements, graphics and charts as necessary.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge and understanding of IRS, US GAAP, California EDD, California Wage and Hour laws, and BayLegal funding requirements, including Legal Services Corporation (LSC) compliance requirements and reporting.
• Lead on parts of the annual budget process, including preparation of personnel cost forecasts.
• Prepare personnel cost sections of individual grant budgets.
• Lead coordination with external auditor of BayLegal’s employee benefit retirement plan 401(k) Savings Plan audit.
• Assist in evaluating staff performance, professional development, and engaging in staff recruitment, hiring, and performance compliance.
• Fosters a work environment that supports high quality work and efficiency, team collaboration, and is free from harassment and discrimination.
• Engage in other tasks and projects that further BayLegal's mission and operations as a non-profit.  

Required Qualifications:  

• Bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or business administration (or 7+ years of equivalent experience without a degree) with increasing responsibility in accounting roles, including one year in a lead or supervisory role.
• Minimum of 5 years of increasing responsibility in payroll performing payroll activities and reconciliations of payroll accounts with 2+ years accounting experience for organizations with 50+ employees in a union setting.
  • Experience working in a non-profit preferred but not required.
• Commitment to complying with all state and federal accounting professional ethics rules, including and not limited to the California Accounting Act, BayLegal funding requirements, and firm standards, policies, and practices.
• Current proficiency and ability to improve proficiency in technological equipment, hardware, and software necessary to perform duties of the position. Software and platform experience required for this position include, but is not limited to:
  • 2 years of experience with Paycom, or similar payroll platform such as ADP, Paylocity, UltiPro, etc.
  • 3 years of experience with MIP or similar accounting platform used by nonprofits or government organizations.
  • Highly proficient in Microsoft Office with a strong understanding of Excel and Word.  
• Experienced in accounting and payroll duties such as:
  • Implementing principles and practices of payroll accounting including auditing, budgeting, and computerized payroll accounting reports.
  • Complying with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States (US GAAP) applicable to nonprofit organizations.
  • Preparing accounting reports and analyses, including statistical and financial analysis, and financial and payroll account analysis reports.
  • Reading, interpreting, and explaining finance accounting and payroll rules, regulations, policies, and procedures.
  • Tracking and adhering to strict timelines to ensure timely performance and meeting of all deadlines.
  • Familiarity with IRS, California EDD, and California Wage and Hour laws and requirements. 
• Additional Required Skills:
  • Humility in working with colleagues, vendors, and individuals of all identities, experiences, and perspectives.
  • Skilled in maintaining high-level organization, accurate calendaring and adherence of deadlines, and detailed record keeping, with an emphasis on electronic processes.
  • Supervising, evaluating, and engaging in professional development of personnel. 
  • Ability to work independently with minimal direction with a superior sense of ownership, while also working collaboratively with the Finance team to ensure timely performance and meeting of deadlines.
  • Strong and effective verbal and written communication skills.
  • Proactive problem-solver with a strong attention to detail.  

Hybrid Work Option: BayLegal is committed to the health and safety of our staff, clients, and community.  BayLegal employees are expected to work on-site and in-person at a designated BayLegal office or community-based advocacy site at least three (3) days per week and may work remotely from home on a part-time basis.  Finance Department employees are expected to reside in California and at a distance allowing them to commute to their physical BayLegal base location during the standard work week.    

Compensation and Benefits: We offer a family friendly environment, and compensation based on competitive public interest salaries along with a generous benefits package.  

BayLegal's benefits package includes 100% employer covered medical, dental, and life insurance for employees and up to 60% for dependents; BayLegal student debt reimbursement program; long term disability insurance; employee assistance program; wage differentials for multi-lingual employees whose non-English language skills are regularly used in the provision of tasks and pass a request test of fluency and/or proficiency; dependent childcare employer contribution program; employer paid CA Bar license and/or social work license fees; and 401k retirement plan with BayLegal contribution following first year.  BayLegal has a generous paid leave policy which includes 15 holidays each year; vacation (starting at 13 days and increasing with additional years of employment); 3 floating holidays each year (days chosen by employee); sick leave; and parental leave.    

The estimated annual salary range is $123,000 - $145,000 (placement in range determined primarily by years of related experience).    

Work Environment and Physical Activity:    

Work Environment: This position is primarily sedentary. When in the office, the applicant can expect to be working at a desk in a temperature-controlled office, in a modular space or individual office. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.  

Physical Activity:  BayLegal provides this list for transparency of the physical activity that may be required for this position. BayLegal is committed to being a workplace that supports applicants and employees with disabilities. Applicants and employees may request reasonable accommodation, and BayLegal will engage in an interactive process.  

Physical activity while performing duties of the job include occasionally being required to sit for prolonged periods; be ambulatory; travel; use hands to type; feel objects, operate tools and/or controls; reach with hands and arms; talk and hear. An employee may occasionally lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus. 

Applications: BayLegal is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Recruitment, placement and promotions are conducted without regard to an individual's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability status, veteran status or sexual orientation, or any other classification protected by Federal, State, and local laws & ordinances. 

We will consider qualified candidates with a criminal history pursuant to the California Fair Chance Act, Federal and local laws. You do not need to disclose your criminal history or participate in a background check until a conditional job offer is made to you. After making a conditional offer and running a background check, if BayLegal is is concerned about conviction that is directly related to the job, you will be given the chance to explain the circumstances surrounding your conviction, provide mitigating evidence, or challenge the accuracy of the background report. Find out more about the Fair Chance Act by visiting the Civil Right's Department Fair Chance Act  webpage. 

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply. Reasonable accommodations are available upon request. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.