Payroll Accountant

Payroll Accountant

The City of Alexandria is located in northern Virginia and is bordered by the District of Columbia (Potomac River), Arlington and Fairfax counties. With a population of approximately 150,000 and a land area of 15.75 square miles, Alexandria is the seventh largest city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Alexandria has a vibrant waterfront and is a unique and historic place to live and work. About one-quarter of the City’s square miles have been designated as a national or local historic district. We proudly embrace our rich history and seize the endless opportunities that lie ahead. If you are interested in working for the vibrant City of Alexandria, we invite qualified candidates to apply for the Payroll Accountant position.

The City of Alexandria’s Finance Department is looking for a motivated, curious, and detail-oriented Accountant I to join our team. As a member of the Accounting Division’s General Accounting team, the Accountant I is instrumental in ensuring that daily City revenue and expenditure transactions are recorded in the general ledger in an accurate, complete, and timely manner. This is challenging work which will call on the Accountant I to collaborate with fiscal staff in various departments to facilitate a customer-focused operation in a fast-paced and time sensitive environment. A significant aspect of this work involves the use of the City’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, Munis. The Accountant I will work under the general supervision of the Payroll Manager.

• Knowledge of the principles of accounting;
• Knowledge of financial systems used in large organizations;
• Ability to quickly grasp the concepts behind payroll, deductions, garnishments and taxation;
• Ability to perform reconciliations and identify, diagnose, and resolve account discrepancies;
• Ability to utilize various financial systems for data entry, reporting and analysis;
• Ability to contribute to the creation of accurate, complete, and timely financial reports;
• Ability to manipulate large amounts of data using Microsoft Excel (e.g. pivot tables, vlookup); and
• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing.

• Performs daily/monthly payroll reconciliations
• Prepares various financial reports utilized internally by the City such as reports on retirement, insurance, cost analyses, payroll, cash reconciliation, investments, and others
• Participates in the resolution of complex financial issues such as payroll and system reconciliation problems by analyzing account balances and transactions;
• Conducts financial research using the City's ERP (Munis) and manipulates financial data in Microsoft Excel;
• Performs detailed analyses of accounts, makes adjusting entries and confers with others to ensure compliance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP);
• Collaborates with Finance staff and other City departments to ensure accurate completion of journal entries in the general ledger;
• Plays a key role in the customer service function of the Pension and Payroll Division by responding in person, on the phone, via email, or via traditional mail to stakeholders; and
• Performs other duties as assigned.

The City of Alexandria's Finance Department is a fast-paced, diverse, and customer service focused operation that is responsible for: the assessment, collection, and enforcement of all City taxes; the management of cash flow and investments; accounting for and reporting the City’s financial position; processing payroll; executing a fair and competitive procurement environment; assessing all real and personal property in the City; managing the City’s risk and safety programs; and managing the City’s pension plans. The Finance Department has seven divisions and in fiscal year 2026 is operating with a total budget of $16.2 million and 109 FTE positions. The goal of the Finance Department is to treat all employees, citizens, and business owners professionally, with fairness and compassion.

Minimum & Additional Requirements

Preferred Qualifications

Notes

This position requires the successful completion of pre-employment background checks including but not limited to a criminal background check. The selection process for this position may include a phone or virtual interview, in-person interview, and/or written examination.

The starting salary range for this position is $54,726.10 to $73,306.48 (midpoint of the Grade), based on qualifications and experience. The incumbent can eventually be awarded up to $96,304.52 (Step 20) with tenure and job performance.