Payroll Officer / Manager

1st Step Solutions are supporting a multi-disciplinary MEP contractor who has an opportunity for a Payroll Officer / Manager on a permanent basis based in Essex.

Our client is a multi-disciplinary Mechanical and Electrical (MEP) contractor specialising in building services engineering across a variety of sectors, including data centres, commercial buildings, education, healthcare and other construction environments.
They are looking to recruit an experienced and organised Payroll Officer / Payroll Manager to take responsibility for the day-to-day running and management of the company's payroll function, including PAYE, CIS and subcontractor payments.

The Role
This is a key position within the finance team, responsible for ensuring the accurate and timely processing of all payroll activities, PAYE submissions, CIS returns and payments to employees and subcontractors.
The successful candidate will have a strong understanding of payroll legislation, HMRC requirements and CIS regulations, ideally with previous experience working within the construction or MEP industry.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and process weekly and monthly payrolls including CIS process for subcontractors
• Process new starters, leavers, salary changes and employee amendments.
• Calculate holiday pay, statutory sick pay, maternity pay and other statutory payments.
• Ensure PAYE, National Insurance and other statutory deductions are calculated correctly.
• Submit RTI reports to HMRC, including FPS and EPS submissions.
• Manage employee pension contributions and auto-enrolment requirements.
• Handle payroll queries from employees and management.
• Produce payroll reports and maintain accurate payroll records.
• Verify subcontractors with HMRC and establish the correct deduction status.
• Ensure subcontractor records, UTR numbers and verification details are accurate and up to date.
• Process subcontractor payment applications and invoices.
• Calculate CIS deductions at the appropriate rates.
• Prepare and submit monthly CIS returns to HMRC.
• Ensure CIS deductions are paid to HMRC within the required deadlines.
• Issue monthly CIS deduction statements to subcontractors.
• Ensure compliance with HMRC CIS legislation and reporting requirements.

Skills & Experience Required·        

• Proven experience in a payroll position, ideally within the construction industry.
• Strong working knowledge of PAYE, National Insurance and HMRC payroll requirements.
• Extensive practical experience of the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS).
• Experience processing weekly and monthly payrolls.
• Experience preparing and submitting CIS returns and making HMRC payments.
• Good understanding of subcontractor verification and CIS deduction rates.
• Experience reconciling payroll, CIS and PAYE accounts.
• Strong Excel and general IT skills.
• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.
• Previous experience working for an MEP contractor, main contractor or construction subcontractor.
• Experience with Sage, Xero, COINS or other payroll/accounting software.

What is on Offer

• Competitive salary, dependent on experience
• Company pension scheme
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Professional development and training opportunities
• Regular exposure to major MEP and technically complex projects
• Supportive and collaborative working environment
• Opportunities for career progression within a growing business