PAYROLL ANALYST

Payroll Analyst, Payroll Timekeepers, Accounting and Finance

Full Time, 80 Hours Per Pay Period, Day Shifts

Covenant Health Overview:

Covenant Health is the region’s top-performing healthcare network with 10 hospitals, outpatient and specialty services, and Covenant Medical Group, our area’s fastest-growing physician practice division. Headquartered in Knoxville, Covenant Health is a community-owned integrated healthcare delivery system and the area’s largest employer. Our more than 11,000 employees, volunteers, and 1,500 affiliated physicians are dedicated to improving the quality of life for the more than two million patients and families we serve every year. Covenant Health is the only healthcare system in East Tennessee to be named a Forbes “Best Employer” seven times.

Position Summary:

The Payroll Analyst is responsible for ensuring the accuracy, integrity, and compliance of payroll across the health system. This role focuses on weekly payroll auditing, payroll account reconciliation, interface monitoring, and robust reporting for Finance, HR, and leadership. The position maintains strong partnerships with Finance, HR, Compensation, and the IT team that supports the organization’s payroll system and related integrations.

• Perform weekly preprocessing and post-processing payroll audits to validate hours worked, pay rates, pay codes, premiums, overtime, deductions, garnishments, and tax withholding accuracy.
• Investigate pay variances and discrepancies, coordinate corrections with HR, Compensation, and managers.
• Ensure compliance with federal and state wage laws, FLSA rules, payroll tax regulations, and internal policies.
• Review master data changes flowing from HR to Payroll (new hires, terminations, pay changes) to ensure proper processing.
• Prepare and distribute standard and ad hoc payroll reports for Finance, HR, operations leaders, and auditors.
• Support internal, external, and regulatory audits by providing reconciliations, documentation, and audit trail support.
• Develop dashboards, metrics, and trend analyses to track payroll KPIs and identify improvement opportunities.
• Provide analytical insights to leadership regarding overtime, incentive pay trends, and payroll accuracy.
• Reconcile payroll related GL accounts including wages, taxes, benefits, deductions, clearing accounts, and labor accruals.
• Prepare and support journal entries for payroll postings and month end close.
• Resolve discrepancies between payroll results and general ledger activity in collaboration with Accounting.
• Maintain controls, documentation, and reconciliation procedures to support audit readiness.
• Educate timekeepers regarding correct department assignments and transfers to maintain payroll alignment with General Ledger reporting.
• Support the maintenance and integrity of the payroll system in partnership with HR, Payroll, and IT.
• Monitor, troubleshoot, and validate payroll interfaces—especially payroll to GL mapping, labor distribution files, and any HR to payroll data transfers.
• Participate in system updates, configuration changes, testing cycles, and interface enhancements.
• Recommend process improvements that enhance accuracy, efficiency, and internal controls.
• Follows policies, procedures, and safety standards. Completes required education assignments annually. Works toward achieving goals and objectives; and participates in quality improvement initiatives as requested.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Education:           

Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Human Resources, or related field.

Minimum Experience:         

Three (3)+ years of payroll or accounting experience in a mid-to-large sized organization required, healthcare experience preferred. Strong understanding of payroll processes, wage and hour laws, tax regulations, and payroll accounting principles plus experience with payroll systems required.

Licensure Requirement:      

None