An investigation into the General Services Admininstration — already under fire for throwing a lavish Las Vegas party — has found widespread abuse of an employee awards program, including that organizers lost at least 115 iPods worth $20,000,
The Washington Post reports.
The report on the “Hats Off” employee recognition program found employees violated agency directives and abused government purchasing cards. The findings also indicated instances of theft in the maintenace of the awards program.
The inspector general of the GSA, who conducted the report, found “significant control weaknesses in the Hats Off Program.”
According to the Post, the findings included:
■ "Employees associated with administering the Hats Off Program were in the top 10 of recipients.
■ "Instances of employees swapping awards with each other and supervisors accepting items from employees.
■ "One employee, whose name was redacted from the report, gave “out 635 awards to 113 individuals, totaling $3,175.”
■ "The Pacific Rim region maintained an inadequate inventory system and meager security on the storage room that held the gift items.
■ Total employee awards exceeded GSA’s 4 percent cap on employee annual salaries. Awards for Region 9 employees also exceeded GSA’s limit of $99-per-item limit on gifts."
The report found security lapses in the storage room with too many having access to the space. The investigation was launched after a report of 40 iPods going missing, but a further inquiry found that 115 iPods valued at $20,000 were possibly stolen.
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