PCS has been has been informed that a fault has been identified in the RM system which has resulted in incorrect payments of overtime. This issue affects employees in both DWP and the Child Maintenance Commission (CMEC).
PCS guidance for overpayments of salary
PCS guidance on recovery of overpayments of pay is available on the PCS DWP Group Website under HR guidance.
DWP and CMEC Policy and Procedure
The DWP and CMEC guidance for recoveries from pay is published on the DWP Intranet under Pay and Reward/Salary. This includes:
- Recovery from Pay Policy
- Recoveries from Pay Procedure
- Recoveries from Pay Advice
Where an overpayment occurs in any one pay month, an automatic adjustment is made from the next month’s salary to recover the overpayment in full. (Policy paragraph 2).
If an overpayment occurs over several months or, occurs in one month but an automatic adjustment cannot be made, a letter is sent about when the overpayment will be recovered. (Policy paragraph 3)
Official error overpayments
Overpayments of salary are subject to the guidance provided by the Treasury in Government Accounting. This policy is separate from the rules governing overpayments of benefit and states that all overpayments of salary, which occur due to mistakes of fact, should be pursued. Generally, if employees have received public money to which they are not entitled, they will be asked to repay it.
Most overpayments of salary fall into the category of mistake of fact. Mistakes of fact, as stated in Government Accounting, include computer input errors. Departmental error alone is not grounds for appeal and therefore appeals received solely for this reason will not be accepted.
Hardship
Employees may claim hardship if repayment would be detrimental to either themselves or their family for financial, health or personal reasons. Hardship must not be confused with inconvenience and the test of hardship should be real. Employees may be asked to supply evidence to support their claim. If it is agreed that payment would cause the employee hardship payroll will consider the individual circumstances to agree an appropriate amount of repayment.
