Payroll Supervisor

A leading agribusiness organization seeks a skilled Payroll Supervisor for their Santa Maria location. This key position requires a strong blend of payroll expertise, regulatory compliance knowledge, and experience managing a diverse workforce that may include seasonal, migrant, hourly, and piece-rate employees.
The Payroll Supervisor is responsible for overseeing and processing accurate and timely payroll for agricultural operations, including permanent, seasonal, hourly, salaried, and piece-rate employees. This role ensures compliance with all federal, state, and local wage and hour laws, agricultural labor regulations, payroll tax requirements, and company policies.
The Payroll Supervisor serves as the primary payroll subject matter expert and collaborates closely with Human Resources, Operations, Accounting, and field management to ensure payroll accuracy and regulatory compliance.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
Payroll Administration

• Process weekly, bi-weekly, and/or semi-monthly payroll for a multi-location agricultural workforce.
• Review and validate employee time records, piece-rate earnings, production data, attendance records, and payroll adjustments.
• Ensure accurate calculations of wages, overtime, meal and rest period premiums, bonuses, incentive pay, deductions, and garnishments.
• Audit payroll records for accuracy and resolve discrepancies before payroll transmission.
• Maintain payroll records and supporting documentation in accordance with company policies and legal requirements.
• Monitor completion of payroll-related reconciliations between payroll, timekeeping, and other applicable systems.

Compliance and Regulatory Oversight

• Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local labor laws, including agricultural wage and hour regulations.
• Maintain compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), California Labor Code, ACA reporting requirements, and applicable agricultural labor regulations.
• Coordinate payroll tax filings and ensure timely remittance of payroll-related taxes.
• Support internal and external audits, labor compliance reviews, and government inquiries.
• Stay current on changes in payroll legislation, agricultural employment laws, and wage requirements.

Team Leadership

• Provide guidance, training, and support to payroll staff and field timekeepers.
• Assign and monitor payroll responsibilities based on operational needs.
• Assist with payroll process improvements and standardization across locations.
• Review employee work for accuracy, completeness, and adherence to established procedures.
• Serve as the escalation point for complex payroll issues and employee inquiries.
• Partner with supervisors and department leaders to ensure timely and accurate workforce reporting.
• Assist with onboarding and training new payroll employees.
• Coordinate cross-training to maintain adequate payroll coverage and reduce dependency on individual employees.

Systems and Reporting

• Maintain payroll system integrity, employee records, and earnings codes.
• Generate payroll reports, labor cost analyses, tax reports, and management dashboards.
• Reconcile payroll-related general ledger accounts and support month-end closing activities.
• Assist with payroll system upgrades, testing, implementations, and process enhancements.
• Identify inefficient or inconsistent processes and recommend improvements to the Payroll Manager.
• Assist with monitoring the effectiveness of newly implemented payroll procedures and controls.

Employee Support

• Respond to employee payroll questions professionally and promptly.
• Assist employees with direct deposit setup, tax withholding changes, earnings statements, and payroll-related concerns.
• Ensure confidentiality of employee payroll and personal information.

Qualifications:

Education

• Associate's degree in Accounting, Finance, Human Resources, Business Administration, or related field preferred.
• Equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.

Experience

• 5+ years of payroll processing experience.
• 2+ years of lead, supervisory, or senior payroll experience preferred.
• Experience supporting agricultural, farming, ranching, produce packing, food processing, or seasonal workforce environments strongly preferred.
• Experience with high-volume payroll processing and complex wage structures.
  Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• Strong knowledge of payroll laws, wage and hour regulations, and payroll taxation.
• Experience with agricultural payroll practices, including piece-rate compensation and seasonal workforce management.
• Proficiency with payroll software, HRIS systems, and Microsoft Excel.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and meet strict deadlines.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• High level of accuracy, attention to detail, and confidentiality.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certified Payroll Professional (CPP) certification.
• Experience with ADP, UKG, Paylocity, Ceridian, Picktrace, Pet Tiger or other enterprise payroll systems.
• Bilingual English/Spanish desired but not required
• Knowledge of California agricultural labor laws and compliance requirements.

Key Competencies

• Payroll Expertise
• Leadership and Accountability
• Compliance Orientation
• Attention to Detail
• Confidentiality and Integrity
• Problem Solving
• Customer Service Focus
• Continuous Improvement
• Collaboration and Teamwork

Benefits

This leading company offers a competitive benefits package designed to support the health, well-being, and financial security of their employees and families, including:

• Medical, Dental, Vision Insurance, Life Insurance
• 401K
• Profit Sharing
• Vacation
• Sick
• Paid Company Holidays
• Bereavement Leave
• Jury Duty Leave

Professional Development

• Payroll certification support (CPP) and continuing education opportunities
• Professional development and training programs
• Career advancement opportunities within the organization

Salary Range:
This is an exempt position. The total compensation range the company may reasonably expect to pay for this role is $78,000 – $90,000 annually. The actual compensation package for this role will be determined by a variety of factors, including but not limited to the candidate’s skills and experience.