Work for the IRS and Have a Conduct Issue? No Problem! Here’s Your Bonus!

In 2012 it was discovered in an audit that over 2,800 employees with conduct problems received bonuses, so in 2016-2017 the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration conducted another audit, and found the problem is still ongoing.

Although the IRS screening stopped over 1,000 employees with tax problems from getting bonuses, another 1,962 employees with discipline problems, including 26 who were found cheating on their taxes, received bonuses totaling over $1.7 million. Three of the employees who received a combined bonus of over $7,000 were found to have over $65,000 in outstanding tax balances.

Among those who received bonuses, two employees who sexually assaulted colleagues received nearly $1,500 in combined bonuses, and another 2 employees receiving bonuses were found to be illegally snooping on taxpayer’s returns.

A spokesman for the IRS said, “The examples are unacceptable but that it’s taken steps to get a handle on things since the last audit.  This continues to be a priority for us, and we will continue to make improvements going forward.”