The CEO of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC), Benjamin Arthur, has highlighted a major issue that continues to drain public sector resources, which is the delay in communicating when employees leave their positions.
Speaking on Joy News’ The Pulse show, Mr Arthur explained that when an employee exits their post, delays in notifying the relevant authorities and removing them from the payroll can result in continued payments for up to two months after their departure.
“The time it takes to communicate an individual’s exit and subsequently remove them from the payroll is far too long,” Mr Arthur said. “In some cases, employees who have already left are still being paid for a month or two. This inefficiency is wasting valuable public funds.”
Mr Arthur also highlighted the crucial role that whistleblowers play in uncovering these payroll discrepancies.
He emphasised that better monitoring and more efficient payroll management could result in significant savings.
“With improved payroll management, we could save up to 8% of what we pay in the public sector,” he noted.
Additionally, Mr Arthur shared findings from payroll analyses conducted for 2023 and 2024, which revealed a troubling trend.
While the number of public sector employees has steadily increased, payroll expenses have risen dramatically, underscoring the need for reforms, he concluded.
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