Jobs

HR, Payroll & Benefits Specialist

Lawrence Academy (LA) is a boarding and day school in Groton, MA, serving 400 students in grades 9-12. LA enjoys its heritage as one of the oldest independent schools in the country while embracing a contemporary student-centered approach that supports its mission. In LA’s tightly knit environment, students are supported and encouraged to exercise their minds, discover their voices, learn creatively, and take their own initiative. The academic program is uniquely hands-on and allows students to discover how their education can be applied in daily life.

Lawrence Academy seeks an energetic and experienced HR, Payroll & Benefits Specialist to manage, administer and process the employee payroll and benefits for Lawrence Academy as well as assist the Director of Human Resources in various processes, including but not limited to recruiting, hiring, onboarding, offboarding, employee benefits education, and leave processing and management. This is a full-time, exempt, benefits-eligible position reporting to the Director of Human Resources.

Responsibilities:

Business Office & Accounting:

• Prepare and process bi-weekly staff payroll and semi-monthly faculty payroll.
• Coordinate payroll matters with Accounting.
• Issue manual or off-cycle checks when needed (e.g., employee terminations).
• Assist in responding to inquiries regarding PTO and calculate and process accurate vacation payouts for employees when needed.
• Collaborate with members of the business office to reconcile benefit invoices.
• Enter new employee data into payroll (ADP) and all applicable benefits software. Make timely updates as needed.
• For separating employees, process benefits cancellations, last check payouts, and termination in ADP software and across all applicable platforms.
• Update and administer employee benefit deduction changes or any salary changes in payroll system and across all applicable platforms.
• Back up on Mail and Packages #2

Human Resources:

• Manage HR and benefit databases and the open enrollment process for all benefits.
• Support recruiting efforts by formatting existing job descriptions for consistency with the current template, working with the Director of HR to develop job postings from detailed job descriptions and ensure posting to all appropriate channels/recruiting sites, removing/de-activating postings when positions are filled, checking the general Jobs email, forwarding incoming resumes to appropriate hiring managers, and responding to candidate inquiries in a clear, professional, informative and positive manner aligning with the school’s reputation for excellence.
• Onboard new employees, including processing background checks and creating active employee records.
• Offboard separating employees.
• Maintain documentation, tracking systems, and employee files with accuracy and confidentiality.
• Address employee benefits inquiries in a timely manner.
• Administer necessary compliance including labor law postings, EEO, HIRD, ACA. Support the Director of HR in compliance reporting.
• Own the administration of workers’ compensation and employee leave claims (PFML, STD, LTD), from initial claims to returning to work. Communicate effectively with employees and insurers regarding details of leaves.
• Develop and execute benefit plan education to alert and encourage participation across benefits solutions and support. Coordinate in-house events, lunch-and-learns, online webinars or information sessions and deliver regular communication to employees on benefit offerings.
• Produce and maintain letters of employment, adjustment letters, and contracts for new and returning staff, faculty, and administrators.
• Coordinate and/or execute projects within the HR and Business Offices to improve efficiency and effectiveness of operational functioning, such as transitioning records from paper to electronic format and coordinating communication packets for specific circumstances–new hires, leaves, retirement, separation, etc.
• Conduct annual employee records review, archive files as necessary, perform repeat background checks for all employees as needed (every 3 years).
• Support the development of employee training programs and the manage the execution of training events.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, human resources, accounting, or related Payroll certification (CPP, UPC) preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to process and manage multiple payrolls in a timely, accurate and efficient manner. ADP payroll experience required.
• Extensive experience successfully designing, managing and executing all onboarding, offboarding and benefits programs and processes—from new hire, open and qualifying event enrollment to changes and leaves to terminations.
• Experience developing employee censuses for insurance purposes, reconciling benefits invoices, and resolving disputes.
• Experience with private plans and self-billing helpful.
• Working knowledge of HR concepts, practices, policies, and procedures; HR Generalist experience helpful.
• Fundamental understanding of operational systems in a school
• Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to cultivate effective, professional relationships with employees at all levels of the organization.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage time
• Professional presentation and excellent written communication
• Comfort speaking with large groups and a high degree of cultural competency.
• High ethical standards and strong professional
• Proficiency with Google Suite, Microsoft Office Suite and ADP payroll required. Experience utilizing multiple employer web portals across multiple vendors and insurers preferred.

To apply for this position, please send your cover letter, résumé, and reference list in a single PDF document to Alison Geehan, at jobs@lacademy.edu. The email subject line should be “HR, Payroll & Benefits Specialist.” No phone calls please.

Cultural competence is an essential element of teaching and learning at Lawrence Academy. We are therefore seeking individuals who are committed to actively participating in professional development and engaging in our cultural competency programs that are structured to move our community forward equitably and inclusively. We encourage candidates from historically underrepresented groups to apply. The Academy does not discriminate and does not tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, genetic information, veteran or Uniformed Service status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

For more information on Lawrence Academy go to www.lacademy.edu.