Staff Accountant
Based in Either Legal Action’s Green Bay or Milwaukee Office
Hybrid: A minimum of 2 days in the office and 3 days remote
March 21, 2024
Legal Action of Wisconsin (Legal Action), Inc. is seeking to fill one full-time Staff Accountant position. This position is available because one of our Senior Accountants (we have two) is leaving Legal Action for a management position with a different company.
Legal Action is heavily funded by grants: About 80% of our funding comes from various (about 50 currently) grants and contracts for service. In addition, most of our grants and contracts are from public (government) sources. Therefore, we desire a Staff Accountant that has experience with grant accounting and with recording grant expenses and revenues in the general ledger. However, grant accounting experience is not required: We will train an incumbent on grant accounting who is otherwise qualified if necessary.
Legal Action is a large, vibrant non-profit law firm funded by the federal Legal Services Corporation, the Wisconsin Trust Account Foundation, and other sources. Legal Action provides free, critical legal aid to about 10,000 - 12,000 low-income persons annually in the southern 39 counties of Wisconsin with offices in Milwaukee, Madison, Racine, Oshkosh, Green Bay and La Crosse. In addition, Legal Action operates a statewide farmworker project. Legal Action attorneys and paralegals have expertise in a range of substantive areas, but most of our work is in the areas of housing, public benefits, removing barriers to employment, consumer law, and family law. Legal Action attorneys and paralegals specialize in specific areas of poverty law, maintain a direct service caseload on behalf of individual clients, and engage in structural change advocacy.
Legal Action believes that equal justice under law can only be achieved through the collaboration of a diverse staff. We strongly encourage applications from women, people of color, people who identify as LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, and people with fife experiences or educational backgrounds that add to the firm's diversity and our capacity to provide high-quality legal aid.
REMOTE WORK AVAILABLE
The Senior Accountant may work remotely three days out of five. (Currently, the accounting team is in the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays.) In addition, we would consider a condensed work week for the Senior Accountant.
OFFICE LOCATION
The Senior Accountant may be housed in either Legal Action’s Milwaukee office or in our Green Bay office. The Milwaukee office is located at 633 West Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 2000 and the Green Bay office is located at 318 S. Washington Street, Suite 310.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
The Staff Accountant Performs routine accounting duties that require thorough knowledge and application of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, practices, and concepts that support the firm’s operations and management, as follows:
Accounts Receivable
• Performs daily financial transactions including verifying, classifying, computing, posting and recording account receivables, including grants and other receivables, and reconciling the accounts receivable ledger.
• Reviews and monitors grant revenue actual to budget and alerting CFO and Controller of any material variances.
• Reviews expenses by funding sources and properly invoice funders for incurred expenses.
Accounts Payable
• Performs accounts payable functions by ensuring that all invoices submitted for payment are recorded accurately for the period, and coded to the proper grant, department, purpose, location, etc., and reconcile the accounts payable ledger.
Journal Entries and Account Reconciliation
• Makes proper journal entries and maintains the general ledger.
• Prepares reconciliation of balance sheet accounts (including bank accounts and others).
• Participates in month-end closing and monthly financial reporting process.
Grant Accounting
• Tracks and records all grant activity including revenues, expenses, accounts receivables and deferred revenue on grant reports.
• Creates financial statements in the accounting software for each grant including reconciliation of the revenue and expenses.
• Prepares grant budgets for discussion and presentation to the organization’s management and funding sources.
• Prepares funding source financial statements and client service reports to the oversight authority.
• Effectively works with management and communicates on all aspects of the grant financials.
Month-End/Financial Statements
• Assists with preparing accurate, timely financial statements in accordance with our established schedule and with input from the rest of the accounting department, including comparative budget to actual.
• Assists with preparing forecasts and projections of cash flow and other performance indicators.
Year-End
• Assists in the preparatory work for each financial audit including preparation and review of accounting schedules, preparation of journal entries, and communicate with auditors during audits.
• Prepares grant, government, and service reports, from Client database Legal Server and assists in tracking year to date expenses.
Compliance
• Maintains physical inventory system including updating spreadsheets, inventory database, tagging new items and processing disposal forms including auditing assets as required by grant funders.
• Spots errors and suggest ways for improving procedures.
• Ensures compliance with GAAP standards.
• Ensures proper record retention is upheld for all financial records.
Other
• The Staff Accountant will also be expected to perform other duties related to the administration of the program which are not related to the substantive legal work of the program.
COVID-19 VACCINATION POLICY
At Legal Action of Wisconsin, health and safety is a top priority. We require all new, unrepresented employees and interns, law clerks, volunteers, and contractors from employment agencies or consulting firms to have completed their COVID-19 vaccinations and booster and to provide medical proof from Wisconsin's Immunization Registry or from a medical provider of their fully vaccinated status as a condition of employment with Legal Action of Wisconsin within 28 days of their first day of employment. Individuals may request a medical or religious exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine requirement.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT
This position involves sedentary work, including sitting and/or standing at a desk while working at a computer for an extended period. This position also exerts up to 10 pounds of force on a regular basis to lift, carry, push, or otherwise move objects. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand, sit, talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer and/or laptop keyboard and use a telephone. Specific vision abilities required for this job include close vision requirements due to computer work. Occasional reaching, bending, kneeling, and stooping involved to retrieve assorted items and materials are required. This position works in an environmentally controlled office environment with moderate noise from phones, printers, and light office traffic.
Legal Action employees may be required to wear a mask that always complies with CDC recommendations when in a Legal Action office or when representing Legal Action in a professional capacity.
SALARY
The salary scale for this position has 40 steps, where each step represents one year of relevant work experience. Step 0 is the minimum salary step for this position, with a salary of $46,814. The Step 2 annual salary (2 years of relevant experience is desired) is $49,415. An incumbent at Step 5 (with 5 years of relevant experience) would earn an annual salary of $53,316; Step 10 earns $59,818; Step 20 earns $72,562; and Step 30 earns $84,266. Employees advance one step on their anniversary date unless they are on a performance improvement plan.
SPANISH OR HMONG LANGUAGE FLUENCY PREMIUM
In addition, Legal Action's Salary Administration Plan includes additional pay ($2,400 or $4,800, depending on demands for the language in the position) for those employees who are fluent in Spanish or Hmong.
FRINGE BENEFITS
Legal Action offers a generous fringe benefits package, including Legal Action-paid health and dental insurance for employees, spouses, and employee’s eligible dependents. We do not require employees to contribute to health and dental insurance premiums for single or family insurance. (Some employees are required to contribute $200/month to the health insurance premium for their spouse, if the spouse has group health insurance provided by their employer.) Legal Action also provides life and long-term disability insurance, a profit-sharing retirement plan, salary deferral options for retirement planning, low-cost employee paid vision coverage, starting leave benefits which include four weeks of vacation per year, four days of personal leave per year, generous sick leave accrual, and four weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees at the start of employment and increasing with longevity.
SCOPE OF AUTHORITY
The Staff Accountant performs their duties with some oversight and direction (depending on their amount of experience) while still working in collaboration with others and the supervisor. The Staff Accountant does not direct the work of others.
GOVERNANCE
LAW's personnel policies and other operating policies and procedures, which are subject to unilateral change by the LAW Board of Directors, govern this position. This position is subject to a probationary period of up to six months.
SUPERVISION
This position will be supervised by Legal Action’s Controller, Kristin Eckert.
QUALIFICATIONS
Required Qualifications:
1. Education: Bachelor’s degree in accounting, or related field, from an accredited university.
2. Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, and other Microsoft Programs.
3. Proficient and working knowledge of accounting software packages and payroll reporting.
4. Proven ability to consistently attend to details and check for accuracy of information.
5. Demonstrated ability to undertake all work with a professional attitude.
6. Ability to handle confidential information professionally and ethically.
7. Analytical and problem-solving skills: Ability to make responsible and appropriate decisions within the limits of standard policy and procedures.
8. Demonstrated ability to be flexible in work style and approach in response to the demands of the situation.
9. Ability to function as an effective team member with other employees through cooperation and shared work to get the work done.
10. Able to set priorities considering what's important and plan accordingly based on the time involved.
11. Commitment to working cooperatively and collegially with all employees who have varied backgrounds and experiences and a commitment to improving the diversity and inclusion of our employees.
Desired Qualifications:
1. Experience: 2 or more years of accounting experience of accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll and account reconciliations.
2. Experience with Abila MIP.
3. Grant accounting experience.
4. Non-profit accounting experience.
Applicants must submit the following application materials via Legal Action of Wisconsin's online applicant portal: https://secure2.entertimeonline.com/ta/7988.careers?ApplyToJob=620945729
• Cover letter summarizing qualifications and interest in the position;
• Resume;
• Names and contact information for three professional references
Applicants may also be asked to complete a skill or performance test as part of the selection process
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS
This position will be open until filled. We will review applicants on a rolling basis. To ensure consideration, submit application materials no later than 11:59 pm Friday, April 5, 2024.
NLADA Mutual Insurance Co., RRG
