Payroll Officer - Education

About the role

A prestigious independent school in Hawthorn, Victoria is looking for a Payroll Officer for a six-month temporary position within its finance team. You will deliver an efficient and accurate payroll service for teaching and professional staff, managing the full payroll cycle, answering queries, keeping employee records and helping with compliance. The role reports to an experienced Finance Manager and works closely with the Finance and People & Culture teams. It is a hybrid position with two days of work from home.

Key responsibilities

• Process payroll end to end for teaching and professional staff
• Interpret and apply Awards, Enterprise Agreements and payroll legislation accurately
• Handle new starters, terminations, salary changes and employee lifecycle updates
• Manage leave entitlements, timesheets and payroll adjustments
• Answer payroll queries and support employees
• Process superannuation, payroll tax and other statutory obligations
• Carry out payroll reconciliations and reporting
• Maintain accurate employee and payroll master data
• Help with month-end processes, audits and compliance, and support payroll system maintenance

Required profile

• Demonstrated experience in end-to-end payroll processing in a complex, high-volume environment
• Strong understanding of payroll legislation, compliance and the interpretation of Awards and Enterprise Agreements
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, able to build relationships across finance, people and culture and the wider school community
• Customer-focused approach and discretion with confidential information
• Previous experience in the education sector, especially an independent school, is highly regarded; candidates from other complex or regulated organisations are also encouraged to apply

What we offer

• Six-month temporary contract with an immediate start
• Two days of work-from-home flexibility
• Supportive, collaborative team environment
• Potential for extension

Applicants apply through Robert Half with an up-to-date CV in Microsoft Word format.