Payroll and Accounting Specialist

Payroll & Bookkeeping Specialist for Multi-Client PEO (Part-Time, Path to W-2) We run payroll for 22 client companies across about a dozen states, most through our PEO and a few as standalone payroll clients. The main cycle is biweekly on Fridays; one client runs weekly on Mondays. We are looking for someone to own these cycles and also handle bookkeeping for our own company when payroll isn't running. This starts as an Upwork engagement, but the goal is to convert to a W-2 employee once we've confirmed the fit. Benefits (dental, vision, 401k) come with the W-2 conversion; full-time with medical is on the table if your background supports taking on more of the accounting side. The hard part: the payroll work is DEADLINE sensitive and runs 5 to 20 hours a week, heavier in processing weeks, lighter in off weeks, with spikes at quarter end and January. The rest of your hours can be cross training / doing general accounting work. The PAYROLL is primary; the other roles can be trained. What the payroll side looks like - 1.Collect and validate client hours, process pay runs in Asure HCM (PEO clients) and QuickBooks Online Payroll (standalone clients) 2.Review registers before release, prepare ACH funding worksheets, confirm direct deposit and tax debits land 3.New hire/termination setup, W-4 and direct deposit changes, deduction updates, garnishments 4.Reconcile each pay run to funding, tie tax liabilities to what left the bank, chase differences Paystub and register archival What the bookkeeping side looks like: Fellow Travelers' own AP, AR, bank and credit card recs, client invoicing, month-end close in QBO PEO back-office: client invoicing, service fee statements, benefit invoice reconciliation against carriers, remittance prep Agency notice intake: log them, identify the client and period, route them before the deadline One hard constraint: Mondays are required every week. The weekly payroll runs Monday, and every other week it is double duty with the full PEO biweekly cycle for all 22 companies landing Monday and Tuesday, with review on Wednesday. Most biweekly work is done before 4pm EST; the weekly run before 5pm EST. You will have backup from the owner, but you need to be the primary and communicate when you can't show up. Tools we use: Asure HCM, QuickBooks Online (including QBO Payroll), Excel, Monday.com, Make.com, and Claude (AI). We will provide access and existing automations. What we need from you Must have: 2+ years in payroll processing, bookkeeping, or a combined role with hands-on responsibility Working knowledge of double-entry bookkeeping (you can look at a payroll journal entry and know whether it makes sense) Can tie a register or subledger to a bank statement and explain the difference Strong Excel skills in accounting/payroll contexts HONESTY about your availability. Pay dates do not move, so if you can't be there, say so early enough that coverage can be found Strong plus: Multi-client experience (PEO, ASO, staffing, bookkeeping firm, CPA firm) QuickBooks Online / QBO Payroll Asure HCM or comparable white-labeled payroll software Multi-state payroll, particularly PA, CA, NJ, NY PA local tax familiarity (Philadelphia wage tax, EIT/LST collectors) FPC certification or accounting degree/coursework A strong bookkeeper who has touched payroll is Ok. We will train. To Apply Tell us which side of this job you are stronger on, payroll or bookkeeping, and describe one time you found a difference that did not reconcile and what turned out to be causing it. That will tell us more than a generic cover letter. Suggested Upwork Skills Tags Payroll Processing, Bookkeeping, QuickBooks Online, Bank Reconciliation, Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Month-End Close, Multi-State Payroll, ADP, Excel