Local Authority: Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council
Issue: Overtime payments
The Local Government Auditor has repeatedly criticised Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council (DLRCC) for various weaknesses in its management of overtime payments to its staff, a review of recent audits shows.
The latest such criticism is contained in a letter sent to the council in August 2021, as part of the 2020 audit by the Local Government Auditor.
The auditor stated that, while "good progress" was made in addressing serious procedural and calculation errors that had been highlighted in previous audits, "there still remains one work group that continues to flout the formal procedures in respect of applying for overtime payments".
The letter also stated that overtime payments made to employees continue not to match "the hours recorded on the overtime claims".
The auditor also warned the council that "the resolution of the weaknesses identified at this and previous audits is long overdue".
Various audits show that issues surrounding overtime payment at the DLRCC have dogged the council for several years. On occasions, the auditor has repeated, almost verbatim, specific criticisms concerning how the council manages those payments.
In the 2014 audit, for example, the Local Government Auditor's review of payroll highlighted "a small number of waged employees who are being paid excessive overtime [and] acting allowances."
That finding was reiterated in the 2015 and 2016 audits.
Meanwhile, the council’s internal audit unit commissioned an audit on this topic by an outside firm, Pinnacle Consulting, which completed its report in July 2018. This reviewed overtime paid in 2016 for waged and salaried staff, which came to around €1.3m in total, shared among 284 staff members. The highest claimant was a salaried staff member paid over €25,000 in overtime.
This audit report noted: "For four of the 10 waged staff members selected for review, there was no supporting documentation available at the depots to vouch the overtime hours claimed. Our discussions with the Payroll and Insurance Section indicated that the depots generally do keep records, however in the case of the four employees for the period in question, the records were not maintained. We were therefore unable to assess whether the overtime hours claimed were valid, accurate and/or correct."
The 2018 Local Government Audit of the council also referenced issues relating to overtime payments. It referred "to the weak internal control environment currently being adopted with regard to the administration of overtime payments". From the sample of payments it reviewed, it also found a "high level of errors".
"It was again noted, specifically in respect of the overtime claims processed for outdoor-based staff, that the general level of information provided to support the need and purpose of the overtime work was not adequate," the report stated.
In response, the council said that a "review of work practices is being carried out" and noted that "work has commenced on the implementation of the audit recommendations".
The council recently told RTÉ Investigates: "Internal controls across all sections have been strengthened and payments for overtime are now only made on receipt of claim forms that fully comply with the Council’s internal procedures and protocols."
