Incorrect time-keeping at the School of Education has cost the University tens of thousands of dollars.
In the future, officials and employees alike should consider steps that minimize the chances of such costly errors recurring.
Substantial over- and underestimates of leave-time through the years amounted to some 200 hours accumulated by some employees.
Accurate bookkeeping is a must. The University faces a potential 10 percent budget cut for next fiscal year. The composition of the General Assembly — and thus favor toward the University — is uncertain in this election year.
It is unfortunate that these errors occurred. It’s even more unfortunate that many employees now face bills as high as $5,000 owed to the University.
The system that was the source of the problems has been replaced. Employees were previously tasked with manually recording their time, which was entered into a spreadsheet by separate employees.
Though the shift to an electronic system has likely eliminated much of the risk, other departments around the University that still use a manual system — if any — should strongly consider a transition.
Internal Audit could also see this as a learning opportunity. It would serve the department well to consider the regularity of its audits and re-evaluate the accuracy and efficiency of its own audit methods. There is no one to watch the watchmen, so it is essential that Internal Audit make no errors of its own.
Finally, employees must remain attentive to their own time records, as errors will only cost them later.
