The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Ministry of Finance and Economy said on Monday that it has halted payment of salaries and pensions to more than 10,000 people in the Kurdistan Region who had been receiving multiple disbursements of government money each month.
The development is part of an effort to tackle the Region’s notorious “ghost employee” problem, where people are paid for work they do not perform, and an effect of the biometric payment system, which is meant to ensure that the same person cannot collect multiple disbursements.
The ministry said that the 10,609 people will be affected by the decision and that they had been drawing a total of 21,588 salaries and pensions.
According to ministry data, 791 public sector workers were discovered to be drawing salaries from multiple locations, totaling 1,639 disbursements.
It added that 3,909 people were simultaneously earning a public sector salary and drawing a pension, noting that 8,147 monthly disbursements were occurring for this class.
Finally, 5,909 people were drawing two pensions, totaling 11,802 disbursements.
“Any public servants harmed by the decision can appeal it with the relevant authorities and their offices,” the ministry said.
The ministry said that its actions were done under the auspices of the pension and salary reform law passed last year.
It is the second such action to root out people unfairly receiving government money.
On November 3, the KRG Supreme Biometric Committee said that it had decided to suspend the salaries of 16,505 people who were illegally receiving more than one salary.
The development is part of an effort to tackle the Region’s notorious “ghost employee” problem, where people are paid for work they do not perform, and an effect of the biometric payment system, which is meant to ensure that the same person cannot collect multiple disbursements.
The ministry said that the 10,609 people will be affected by the decision and that they had been drawing a total of 21,588 salaries and pensions.
According to ministry data, 791 public sector workers were discovered to be drawing salaries from multiple locations, totaling 1,639 disbursements.
It added that 3,909 people were simultaneously earning a public sector salary and drawing a pension, noting that 8,147 monthly disbursements were occurring for this class.
Finally, 5,909 people were drawing two pensions, totaling 11,802 disbursements.
“Any public servants harmed by the decision can appeal it with the relevant authorities and their offices,” the ministry said.
The ministry said that its actions were done under the auspices of the pension and salary reform law passed last year.
It is the second such action to root out people unfairly receiving government money.
On November 3, the KRG Supreme Biometric Committee said that it had decided to suspend the salaries of 16,505 people who were illegally receiving more than one salary.
