A number of government workers were paid overtime even when they were on vacation leave, according to a revealing 2007 audit report that shed a particularly negative light on the Ministry for Investment, Industry and Information Technology.

Various control issues, described as "opportunities for improvement", were reported by the National Audit Office, which paints a picture of a disorganised ministry where expenditure on personal income exceeded its allocated budget by €70,270.

A policy coordinator was found to have spent €3,065 in mobile phone bills, exceeding his allowance entitlement of €815 "excessively", according to the report.

Another employee had received at least three months pay in full despite working reduced hours. Two others who had applied for two days of sick leave on half pay were given their full pay anyway.

The report, tabled in Parliament on Monday, also found instances where the number of hours claimed in overtime were different from those recorded in attendance sheets.

At one point, the Audit Office said, the authorities had adopted most of its recommendations but for some reason the areas in which the ministry had received most criticism "remained outstanding".

Among these shortcomings, two messengers working at the private secretariat were noted to have applied for overtime after 1.30 p.m. even though their normal working hours extended to 5.15 p.m.

The report also reveals that attendance records were amended with correction fluid by officers at the private secretariat.

"It transpired that the employees were possibly signing both the attendance sheets as well as the overtime sheets for a whole week in advance," the report said.

It added that the automated attendance recording system in place was not being used. The report listed all the shortcomings in attendance sheets: "persistent late attendance, illegible time recorded or time covered with correction fluid, 'time-out' recorded in different handwriting than that of 'time-in' and 'time-in' and 'time-out' not recorded at all".

Overtime was not always approved beforehand and, in one such case, no documentation could be found to support a claim by an employee for 90 hours overtime.

In many instances, employees did not present medical certificates to substantiate sick leave and none of the vacation leave taken by personnel engaged with the private secretariat was supported by a request.

The report also said that the "on call allowance" of €1,817 annually that a messenger was receiving was not justified.

An employee who was allowed to lease a car made the arrangements himself and the ministry paid without a formal contract with the supplier.

The areas that were not "adequately addressed" following the Auditor's recommendations included lack of documentation to support claims for overtime, shoddy attendance recordsinadequate approval of special leave, excessive mobile phone expenditure, observations relating to the full use of office cars, the qualification allowance enjoyed by an employee in the minister's secretariat and the on call allowance paid to a messenger.

Attempts to get the ministry's reaction yesterday were unsuccessful.

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