There have been stories of workers trying to earn a paycheck without doing work before, but we have not seen one quite like this! Personnel Today explains how a worker in Italy got paid without showing up for a shift in 15 years.
The Ansa news agency reported that Salvatore Scumace was, on paper, a fire safety worker at the Pugliese Ciaccio hospital in Cantazaro since 2005, but now he’s been arrested for taking a paycheck for 15 years without doing work.
He now faces charges of fraud, aggravated extortion, and abuse of office, but he’s not the only one getting punished. 60 people in total are being investigated for their role in the coverup and related charges. All have been dismissed.
Notably, two HR managers are facing abuse of office charges for not checking in on Scumace’s presence at work. Four other managers are also facing charges for their role in the matter. It is estimated that Scumace collected the equivalent of $651,000 in Euros during his scheme.
A similar situation happened in Spain in 2018. A worker there skipped work for 10 years while earning around $60,000 a year in Euros. However, he would show up to work each morning and evening to use the fingerprint scanner to clock in and out. When questioned, he said he was permitted to work from home. He was, ostensibly, a civil servant, so he was banned from holding public office for nine years.