[Malta] ‘Significant’ payroll errors at company under Prime Minister’s control

In Malta, an audit has uncovered “significant errors” in the payroll processes of a company under the direct control of the Prime Minister’s office, Times of Malta reports.

The errors at Resources Support and Services Ltd (RSSL) led to overpayments to its employees, including one worker on reduced hours who continued to receive full-time allowances.

The employee had reportedly been working on a reduced-hour basis since October 2023, yet was paid allowances in full, resulting in an overpayment of €12,971 for 2024.

Other examples the auditor general found included an employee who was supposed to be docked €2,411 for overpaid allowances in previous years, but never had the amount reduced from his salary. Another employee was paid twice for a shift and Sunday allowance, resulting in an overpayment of €662, while the 2023 cost of living adjustment didn’t get added to another worker’s pay.

The auditor general reportedly stated that these examples, based on a sample of 30 employees, should be considered an exhaustive list, and further errors cannot be ruled out. They noted that payroll adjustments were manually entered in a spreadsheet and then forwarded to the payroll contractor for processing.

A statement said, “The auditor general found no internal verification procedures in place to ensure the accuracy of keyed adjustments and the reliability of information submitted to the payroll contractor.”

Despite the heightened risk of human error, inaccuracies and inconsistencies associated with manual processes, the auditor general did not find any internal verification procedures in place to ensure the accuracy of keyed adjustments and the reliability of information submitted to the payroll contractor.

The audit revealed that verifications by RSSL on the contractor’s work were only carried out on an “exceptional basis”.

The auditor general recommended the introduction of automated tools to replace the manual spreadsheets used for payroll, reducing the chance of human error and providing a reliable audit trail.

In response, RSSL stated that a sudden influx of 300 employees, the bulk of whom came from the now-defunct Air Malta, had created enormous pressure on RSSL’s financial and administrative capacity.

The company reportedly committed to strengthening its random payroll data testing.

Source: Times of Malta

(Quote via original reporting)

In Malta, an audit has uncovered “significant errors” in the payroll processes of a company under the direct control of the Prime Minister’s office, Times of Malta reports.

The errors at Resources Support and Services Ltd (RSSL) led to overpayments to its employees, including one worker on reduced hours who continued to receive full-time allowances.

The employee had reportedly been working on a reduced-hour basis since October 2023, yet was paid allowances in full, resulting in an overpayment of €12,971 for 2024.

Other examples the auditor general found included an employee who was supposed to be docked €2,411 for overpaid allowances in previous years, but never had the amount reduced from his salary. Another employee was paid twice for a shift and Sunday allowance, resulting in an overpayment of €662, while the 2023 cost of living adjustment didn’t get added to another worker’s pay.

The auditor general reportedly stated that these examples, based on a sample of 30 employees, should be considered an exhaustive list, and further errors cannot be ruled out. They noted that payroll adjustments were manually entered in a spreadsheet and then forwarded to the payroll contractor for processing.

A statement said, “The auditor general found no internal verification procedures in place to ensure the accuracy of keyed adjustments and the reliability of information submitted to the payroll contractor.”

Despite the heightened risk of human error, inaccuracies and inconsistencies associated with manual processes, the auditor general did not find any internal verification procedures in place to ensure the accuracy of keyed adjustments and the reliability of information submitted to the payroll contractor.

The audit revealed that verifications by RSSL on the contractor’s work were only carried out on an “exceptional basis”.

The auditor general recommended the introduction of automated tools to replace the manual spreadsheets used for payroll, reducing the chance of human error and providing a reliable audit trail.

In response, RSSL stated that a sudden influx of 300 employees, the bulk of whom came from the now-defunct Air Malta, had created enormous pressure on RSSL’s financial and administrative capacity.

The company reportedly committed to strengthening its random payroll data testing.

Source: Times of Malta

(Quote via original reporting)