Payroll Officer

Job description

Payroll Officer (Maternity Cover – 3 Days per Week)

Chiswick + monthly site visits | Fixed-term contract

Payroll at Mizkan isn’t just about pressing a button once a month. It’s about getting it right, understanding the story behind the numbers and using the systems at your disposal properly.

We’re looking for a Payroll Officer to join our HR team on a maternity cover contract. You’ll take ownership of our monthly payroll for around 370 employees, spread across multiple UK sites, with different overtime rules, working patterns, and real operational complexity.

This is a role for someone who knows payroll, enjoys problem-solving and wants to improve the way our systems work.

What the role looks like:

For around 10 days each month, you’ll be deep in payroll:

• Running our monthly payroll across multiple sites
• Checking Time & Attendance data and overtime approvals
• Making sure we’re compliant with UK payroll legislation, pensions and HMRC requirements
• Explaining payroll variances month-to-month and partnering with Finance on reconciliations

The rest of the time?

You’ll be:

• Improving how we use Dayforce
• Reducing manual spreadsheets
• Tightening processes
• Helping managers understand payroll and Time & Attendance better

This isn’t a “sit behind a desk” role. You’ll:

• Visit one of our sites around once a month
• Run drop-ins or go out onto the floor to speak to people
• Be confident explaining payroll, not hiding from questions

What we’re looking for

You’ll likely be someone who:

• Has at least 2 years’ experience running UK payroll end-to-end
• Has strong, up-to-date knowledge of UK payroll legislation (NMW, pensions, HMRC)
• Is CIPP qualified (or close to it)
• Is confident using payroll systems (Dayforce ideal, but Workday/Oracle or similar is fine)
• Is strong in Excel (formulas, lookups, pivot tables)
• Enjoys improving systems and processes
• Is confident, approachable, and comfortable working with both sites and senior stakeholders

If you like modern payroll, smart systems and real ownership, it could be a great role for you!

The practical bits

• 3 days per week (22.5 hours) with one day in the office (flexible on days of work across Monday to Thursday)
• Based in Chiswick, with monthly travel to one of our sites (Bury St Edmunds or Middleton)
• Fixed-term maternity cover
• Supportive handover and strong internal support from our HR and Finance teams

Extra information

Status

Open

Education Level

Secondary School

Location

Chiswick

Type of Contract

Full-time jobs

Published at

04-03-2026

Full UK/EU driving license preferred

No

Car Preferred

No

Must be eligible to work in the EU

No

Cover Letter Required

No

Languages

English