Government trying to recover nearly $50,000
The Saskatchewan government has fired a worker who fraudulently claimed more than $47,000 in unemployment benefits while on the province's payroll.
The worker claimed income support and transitional employment allowance benefits from the Ministry of Social Services from January 2019 to June 2024, claiming to be unemployed.
This is the case even though the individual was employed by the government of Saskatchewan from November 2021 to August 2024.
Overall, the individual received $47,985.44.
The incident was reported to the police and the employee has been charged with fraud and identity theft.
The worker has also been terminated as the ministry is pursuing recovery of the loss, according to the Saskatchewan government.
The provincial government releases a report on losses of public money within government ministries and Crown corporations every quarter. The incident was the only one reported for the period from July 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024.
The quarterly report of losses report tracks losses of more than $500 in money or property due to fraud or other illegal activities by government employees, noted CBC.
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Previously, the one worker at the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) took home a total of $29,660 over the past two years from paid overtime shifts that weren’t worked, according to the government.
How can fraud be prevented in the workplace?
Organizations need to do more than just detect and remedy fraud instances in isolation, according to Deloitte.
“An effectively designed, implemented, and managed fraud control strategy needs to be tailored to the organisation’s specific risk profile.”
The audit and consulting firm shares the following infographic to show an effective way of preventing fraud.
Source: Deloitte
One in five Canadian businesses have fallen prey to payment fraudsters this year, according to a previous report from Payments Canada.