POSITION CLOSING BY FRIDAY MARCH 13, 2026 BY 4:00 PM.

Payroll and HR Specialist

1.0 FTE

8 hours

2025-2026 School Year

Our District:

Pioneer School District serves approximately 750 P-8 students and encompasses a rural area east of Shelton in the South Puget Sound region. The district is mainly forested, accented by lakes and waterways with multiple recreational opportunities. The district's newer schools (remodeled and rebuilt in 2017) and its quality education coupled with its beautiful setting is attracting young families to the area. Our community is known for having a strong commitment to supporting our schools and our students. Our district is committed to ensuring that every student achieves high levels of learning every day.

Our Community:

Pioneer School District is in a beautiful, rural community in the South Puget Sound region of Washington state – one of the most beautiful and livable areas of the state with numerous recreational opportunities for hiking, boating, and fishing in beautiful Mason County. The Pioneer community offers a balanced lifestyle in a beautiful, family-oriented rural community with easy access to urban areas of the South Puget Sound area and the amenities of the West Coast.

Position Description:

The Payroll/HR Specialist supports the HR Director in overseeing the school district’s payroll and human resources operations. This position is responsible for processing and maintaining accurate payroll records, employee compensation data, benefits administration, and personnel documentation, ensuring compliance with local, state, and federal laws and regulations. The Payroll/HR Specialist performs duties essential to the efficient operation of the district office and requires knowledge of district policies, collective bargaining agreements, employment procedures, and internal office systems. This position responds to employee inquiries regarding payroll and HR-related matters and directs administrative concerns through appropriate channels.

Knowledge, Skills, and Responsibilities: (Accounts Payable Portion)

Payroll:

• Maintaining and updating all employee leave balances.
• Auditing and calculating payment for classified staff and extra-curricular timesheets.
• Auditing substitute employee timesheets and calculating appropriate compensation.
• Entering payroll data for all employees, including substitutes, into the computerized payroll system.
• Ensuring salary and benefit coding aligns with approved budget codes.
• Making periodic updates to employee benefits and payroll deductions.
• Maintaining payroll spreadsheets and supporting documentation.
• Balancing final payroll and printing reports to verify accuracy prior to processing.
• Providing payroll documentation to the HR Director for monthly verification.

Reporting and Compliance:

• Preparing required payroll and benefits reports for federal, state, and local agencies, including but not limited to DRS transmittals, quarterly IRS Form 941, workers’ compensation, employment security reporting, and annual IRS W-2 processing.
• Completing monthly payroll tax reporting.
• Quarterly reporting for payroll
• Maintaining current knowledge of IRS, Social Security Administration, Department of Labor & Industries, Department of Employment Security, Department of Retirement Systems, and other regulatory agency requirements.
• Ensuring compliance with collective bargaining agreements and all applicable federal and state laws.

Employee Compensation & Benefits Administration:

• Calculating and processing sick leave buy-back payments and retiree sick leave cash-outs.
• Calculating vacation pay for eligible employees.
• Updating and maintaining employee benefit and deduction records.
• Responding to employee inquiries regarding compensation, benefits, and payroll deductions.
• Verifying employment and salary information for lending institutions and authorized agencies.

Record Keeping:

• Maintaining accurate and confidential district payroll files and records.
• Ensuring proper retention and organization of payroll documentation.

Collaboration & Other Duties:

• Working closely with Human Resources to ensure accuracy of shared employee information.
• Supporting HR and payroll-related audits as needed.
• Performing other payroll and HR-related duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

Education:

• High school diploma or equivalent; some accounting or finance courses may be beneficial.

Experience:

• Previous experience in bookkeeping, accounts payable, or accounting roles is preferred, but not required.

Technical Skills:

• Experience in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word) Google, Skyward, and Qmlativ.

Other Skills:

• Strong attention to detail and accuracy.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills.
• Good communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Problem-solving skills.

Application Procedure:

Applicants must apply through ED Jobs Northwest and upload the required supporting documents. Complete instructions are online with a checklist of the documents you need to submit. Interested applicants must upload the following documents:

• A letter of application, not to exceed two pages addressing the knowledge, skills and abilities of this position
• A current resume
• Three (3) letters of reference
• Only complete applications which include the above items will be considered.

Salary Range: $66,343.13-$71,578.83 depending on experience, 260 days. Please note, this contract will be prorated for the 2026 school year.

Insurance Benefits

Employees who are anticipated to work 630 hours during the school year (September 1 through August 31) are eligible for medical, dental, vision, long term disability and basic life insurance benefits.Pioneer School District

benefits are administered by the Washington State Healthcare Authority under the School Employees Benefits Board (SEBB). Click on the link https://www.hca.wa.gov/employee-retiree-benefits/school-employees for information on available benefit options.

Retirement and Deferred Compensation

Eligible employees are required to be a member of the Washington State Department of Retirement Systems Plan. For eligibility information, check on the link to the Department of Retirement Systems' website. Employees also have the ability to participate in tax deferred 403(b) and 457 Deferred Compensation Plans (DCP). These are supplemental retirement savings programs that allow you control over the amount of pre-tax salary dollars you defer as well as the flexibility to choose between multiple investment options.Click on the link https://www.drs.wa.gov/plan/dcp/ for information on the 457 plan (DCP) with the Department of Retirement Systems. To enroll in an eligible 403(b) plan, employees must consult with their own financial planner that is an approved vendor.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Effective June 11, 1992, pursuant to Public Law 92544 all new employees must complete a satisfactory fingerprint and sexual misconduct background check. All employment is considered temporary until receipt of satisfactory check. Proof that the fingerprinting process has begun must be supplied to Human Resources prior to the first day of employment.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER-The Pioneer School District does not discriminate in any programs or activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age and provides equal access to the Boys Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following employees have been designated to handle questions and complaints of alleged discrimination: Civil Rights Compliance Coordinator, Jeff Davis, 360-426-9115, jdavis@psd402.org, Address: 112 E. Spencer Lake Road, Shelton, WA 98584. Section 504 Compliance Coordinator: Amy Dahlberg, 360-427-2737, adahlberg@psd402.org. Address: 112 E. Spencer Lake Road, Shelton, WA 98584. Title IX Coordinator: Amy Koster, 360-426-9115, akoster@psd402.org. Address: 112 E. Spencer Lake Road, Shelton, WA 98584.

Complaint procedures can be found on website under Board Policy #3210 (students) and #5010 (employees).

The Pioneer School District will provide reasonable accommodations to enable persons with disabilities the opportunity to apply for open positions and to participate in District interview procedures. Persons with disabilities or who need translation services are asked to notify the Human Resources Office at 360-426-9115 at least three days prior to the date on which the requested accommodation is needed.