Manager of Payroll Tax

The Payroll Tax Manager is responsible for ensuring payroll tax accuracy and maintaining compliance with federal, state, and local tax regulations. The manager will lead and develop 1 to 2 Payroll Tax Specialists and be the primary tax subject matter expert and resource for the payroll tax team and organization. This position will also partner cross-functionally with Payroll, HRIS, Finance, Legal, and other teams to ensure accurate and compliant payroll tax operations.

This position is open to candidates in all states and will be fully remote for candidates located more than 40 miles outside of the Cincinnati area.

• Oversight of tax compliance requirements, regulations, and confidentiality provisions for the payroll tax team
• Assure all Federal, State, and Local payroll tax liabilities and associated regulatory tax filings are completed 100% accurate and on time
• Oversight of each quarterly tax close, as well as the annual W-2/W-2c process
• Overall maintenance and development of procedures and policies related to the payroll tax department, with understanding of their correlation to other cross-department impacts
• Oversight and collaborative relationship management with third-party payroll tax system providers to ensure long-term stability of the solution as it relates to our business
• Develop policies, processes, and procedures to ensure payroll tax compliance in a multi-state environment
• Maintain payroll data integrity in the systems by running queries, analyzing data, and creating and running various audits
• Ensure regulatory compliance and prepare EEOC, Bureau of Labor Statistics, multi-state reporting, and other statutory compliance as required
• Stay educated on the latest laws and legislation at the local, state, and federal levels
• Partner with Legal to address employee compliance in accordance with federal, state, and local laws
• Review and analyze current payroll and tax procedures to recommend and implement changes leading to best-practice operations
• Resolve accounting and reporting discrepancies and irregularities in a timely manner related to payroll, including those within the payroll system, general ledger, or payroll-related tax reporting
• Drive the development and coaching of payroll tax team members and ensure team members are cross-trained within the department
• Ensure system compliance with SOX and internal controls
• Demonstrate strong customer service and problem-solving skills when addressing payroll tax questions and issues
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively at both detail and big-picture levels and drive projects forward
• Partner effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders at all levels of the organization

• Bachelor's Degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related discipline plus 6+ years' experience in the Payroll Tax field, or the equivalent of 10+ years' experience in the Payroll Tax field. (Required)
• 6+ years' experience with payroll taxes in at least 30+ states. (Required)
• 5+ years' experience in payroll tax leadership. (Required)
• 5+ years' Workday software experience. (Required)
• 5+ years' experience working with third-party payroll tax compliance tools such as SmartCompliance. (Preferred)
• Certification such as FPC or CPP. (Preferred)
• Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills with an ability to communicate information clearly and effectively throughout all levels of the organization
• Demonstrated ability to work well with cross-functional groups
• Demonstrated interpersonal, collaborative, and relationship-building skills; ability to interact positively with teammates at all levels of the company

Compensation ranges from $90,000 - $110,000 depending on experience.

Language Requirement
This role requires English proficiency. Federal, state, and local requirements, including U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations, require training, safety communications, company policies, employment documents, and other job-related communications be conducted in English.

First for a reason:

At First Student, we are a family of 60,000+ employees who take pride in safely transporting more than 5 million students and passengers to and from their destinations each day! Our family of brands include Transco, Total Transportation, Maggies Paratransit, and GVC II. Our employees are at the forefront of safety and innovation; they create and implement the most advanced training and technology the transportation industry has to offer.

In the state of Washington, all technician and driving positions, including but not limited to van drivers and any other position requiring employees to drive a company-owned vehicle, are considered safety-sensitive and are therefore subject to drug and alcohol testing, including cannabis.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status. First is also committed to providing a drug-free workplace. First will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance, and any other fair chance law. Philadelphia's Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Ordinance Poster is at this link or upon request https://www.phila.gov/media/20210423160847/Fair-Chance-Hiring-law-poster.pdf.

About us
An industry leader famous for our yellow school buses and service and safety excellence, we’ve provided student transportation services to schools for over 100 years. Continually investing in the services of the future, we’re proud to be part of FirstGroup America – the largest provider of safe, reliable and sustainable surface passenger transportation services in North America.

Industry leader
We safely operate more than one third of all contracted school buses in North America.
Together our 50,000 school buses travel nearly 600 million miles per year — the equivalent of 1,200 round trips to the moon.
We operate in around 550 locations throughout 38 U.S. states and 8 Canadian provinces.

Innovation
We were the first school bus company to utilize global positioning systems (GPS), so at any one time we know where all of our buses are and how fast they’re travelling.
Passionate about safety, we’ve installed Safety Crossing Gates on the front of all of our school buses and use the Child Check-MateTM electronic reminder system to make sure no sleeping children remain inside a bus at the end of each route.

Awards & recognition
We won the Occupational Excellence Achievement Award from the National Safety Council two years in a row.
Dedicated to safety, FirstGroup received the National Safety Council’s (NSC) Green Cross for Safety Medal - the highest award for safety in North America.

Teamwork and trust
It takes a diverse team of skilled professionals to provide a safe, effective and efficient student transportation system. From our school bus drivers and location managers to routers, dispatchers and fleet technician mechanics, the work we do every day makes a big impact on the daily lives of students, parents, local communities and school district partners.

We’re very proud of our elite team of over 55,000 dedicated, caring and diverse professionals. And they are the #1 reason we’re trusted by over 1,400 school districts - more than any other provider. Everybody here plays their part in creating a positive school bus experience.

Our culture
We live and breathe our vision and values. They are embedded in our culture and drive our commitment to our customers and communities. Our culture fosters growth and promotes respect, reliability, responsibility and safety. And we recruit people who share these values and will work together to build strong and trusting partnerships in the communities we serve.

Safety – Although our safety record is twice as safe as the industry average, we continually seek out opportunities to enhance our operational and safety initiatives.
Learning – Through our learning culture that spans over 550 locations, we receive and share insight from our people to enhance our service now and in the future.
Making a difference - By doing our job well, we make a positive impact on many lives – including the millions of students who travel with us every school day.
Careers for all – We’re an Equal Opportunity Employer and an Employer of Choice.
By consistently encouraging and supporting an open dialogue with our people and partners, we’re able to share new ideas and develop new ways to meet the needs of our customers and passengers. At First Student, you’ll feel empowered to serve your community. So join the team and start to make a difference.