Dual employment is rare for Washington state workers, audit finds

Although rare, some Washington workers are employed by two state agencies at the same time, and the state can do more to ensure these instances are appropriately managed, according to a new performance audit by the Office of the Washington State Auditor.

Auditors reviewed dual employment in state agencies, in which one person holds two different positions. Out of 75,000 state workers, auditors identified 93 who were dual employed, with an average of six months of overlapping payroll payments.

In most cases, dual employment is appropriate. For example, a person may work at two part-time positions at two different agencies, the hours of which do not overlap each other. However, cases of inappropriate dual employment do occur. Auditors previously identified a government employee who worked remotely and held two full-time jobs for a state agency and an outside company for more than one year and requested more than 800 overtime hours, resulting in about $70,000 of questionable payroll payments.

The performance audit published today includes recommendations to the state’s Office of Financial Management to ensure agencies are aware of and managing their employees’ dual employment effectively.

“The recommendations in this report will help Washington’s state agencies be clear and direct with workers about the rules for outside employment,” said State Auditor Pat McCarthy. “This report also will assist agencies in developing better policies and practices around dual employment, helping government maintain public trust by protecting public resources.”

The full report can be found on the State Auditor’s Office website here: Reducing the Risk of Inappropriate Dual Payroll Payments

Media questions: Assistant Director of Communications Adam Wilson, Adam.Wilson@sao.wa.gov, 564-999-0799