Ghost Employment is a term for a fraudulent practice where some of the individuals appear as an employee on a reputed company payroll and accounting systems, but they do not perform the task assigned to them by the company.
So, for this reason, the practice is usually carried out to steal money or to create an appearance of a bigger workforce than what it is. On the other hand, ghost employment can also come into view as individuals who falsely represent themselves as legitimate employee on the company’s payroll records, despite not contributing any actual work to well-known organizations.
Therefore, the deceptive practice is also employed to siphon funds or to in an artificial manner inflate the company’s workforce sixes. In short, the above highlights the important actions taken by the individuals who are a part of the ghost employment and the deceptive nature of this ghost employee fraud practice.
1. What Is Ghost Employment?
Ghose employment refers to fraudulent schemas where individuals dishonestly join as ghost workers on company payrolls despite not performing any genuine work for the company. Hence the illicit practice is usually undertaken for financial growth to manipulate the perception of a bigger workforce within an organization.
In fact, ghost employment happens when individuals participate in a scheme to mislead the company’s role and human resource department. They do these activities intentionally giving false information like personal details and educational qualifications to secure a place on the payroll.
As a result, the individuals might not have any relation with the company beyond their deceptive practice. After their names have been added to the company’s payroll fraud those who join in ghost employee schemes mostly receive daily salary payments, advantages and other beneficial entitlements by considering them legitimate employees of the workforce.
However, they never contribute to any meaningful labour tasks of the company. Alternatively, they sometimes plan with other individuals included in the scheme to divert the ill-gotten funds for personal growth. To sum up, ghost employment manifests in many forms:
1.1. Fictious Employee
In this case, entire fabricated identities are being added to the company’s payroll and accounting activities. For the most part, these individuals never existed, but the employment is well maintained to divert payroll budgets.
1.2. Ex Employee Records
On the whole, ex-employees who leave the company or retire continue to appear on the company’s decentralized payroll processes. This could be due to clerical mistakes or intentional manipulation.
1.3. Conspiracy
Even though current employees can the conspiracy with outsiders to add ghost employees to company payroll. So sometimes this can happen by sharing a portfolio of ghost salary with conspirators.
1.4. Identity Theft
In most cases, the identities of unknowing individuals file and are for ghost employment without their prior knowledge and consent.
In conclusion, the motive behind ghost employment varies. Hence those who engage might seek to scam company funds, inflate the organization’s workforce to protect additional resources or maintain the pretense of growth and salability which can be beneficial for accessing or attracting potential investors.
In short ghost employment process is illegal and completely unethical which leads to financial loss for the organization and legal consequences for those who joined in. To avoid and detect these fraudulent activities most companies sometimes integrate robust payroll and HR management system, conduct regular audit and maintains internal controls.
Moreover, whistleblowing mechanisms and anonymous reporting channels help in encouraging employees to report suspicious activity to uncover and address ghost employment.
2. Types of Ghost Employment
Overall, here is a complete explanation of the many types of ghost employment:
2.1. Fictious Employees
On the whole fictitious employees showcase one of the common forms of ghost employment. People with no real association with the organization are together into the company payroll as if they were genuine employees.
2.2. Ex-Employees
In short ghost employees also involve ex-employees who appear when individuals who have worked before for the organization but are no longer a part of it continue to appear on the company payroll.
In addition, this happens due to administrative mistakes, oversight or intentional manipulation.
Altogether the ex-employees continue to take salary payment and advantages even though they do not exist and does not contribute to the organization’s operation.
2.3. Conspiracy
For this reason, conspiracy-based ghost employment involves the active engagement of current employees in fraudulent schemes. In this case, ghost employees also share a portion of ill-gotten salary with conspirators.
Conspiracy can be tough and challenging to check as it may include insiders who have intimate knowledge of organizational payroll. Procedure.
2.4. Identity Theft
Above all identity theft is a form of employment where individuals’ identities are theft and used to form fake employees on company payroll. Therefore, individuals whose identity have been seized without prior knowledge or consent becomes unwitting victim of ghost employment.
For this reason, these frauds also include sophisticated techniques of identity theft like gaining personal information through a data breach or social engineering tactic.
To demonstrate every type of ghost employment actively includes individuals in deceptive practices focusing on either scammed funds, maintaining resources or maintaining an appearance. In order to do this, the company needs to integrate strict measures to avoid and find fraudulent activity as they lead to a very significant economic loss and legal consequences.
3. Motive Behind Ghost Employment
Following the motive behind ghost employment is complex and driven by many factors. So, let’s jump into various reasons why people are engaging in this deceptive practice:
3.1. Financial Growth
Firstly, one of the primary objectives behind ghost employment is the pursuit of financial growth. Therefore, the people who are engaged in this fraudulent practice stand to advantage by receiving unearned payments and other employee profits.
Hence these ill-gotten profits provide a steady income stream without the need for actual working in the company or organization. In general, these employees sometimes collude with others to distract these illegal finds for personal uses by making it a lucrative endeavour for those engaged.
3.2. Resource Dodges
Indeed, ghost employment is also motivated by a complete desire to manipulate the company or organization’s resources. By amplifying the workforce artificially those who are engaging in this fraudulent practice secures an extra resource from the company or organization.
So, this involves acquiring additional office space, tools or budget-friendly allocation for the departments or team members. Due to this, a large workforce on paper creates a great impression of more productivity or growth which leads to the allocation of additional resources.
3.3. Facade of Improvement and Stability
Maintaining a facade of improvement and stability is one of the motives for ghost employment. On the whole most companies or organization sometimes strives to appear bigger and more successful than they are as it is the best way to attract investors, lender and potential clients.
Last but not least the exaggeration of the employees of a company or organization. Can create an illusion of growth and financial health. However, this kind of perception can be beneficial when asking for a loan, investment, or business partnership.
3.4. Foster Loyalty and Favor
In most cases, individuals are engaging in ghost employment to take loyalty or favour from others within the company. For example, an employee can add a close friend or a relative member to the company payroll although the individual does not exist or works in the company or organization.
In addition, this act forms a sense of indebtedness or fosters goodwill potentially leading to return in the form of personal or professional favors.
3.5. Exploitation of Weak Internal Control
Last but not least oversight in the company helps in motivating individuals to be involved in ghost employment. If a company or organization lacks rigid checks and balances in its payments and HR procedure it becomes very easy for the employees or external actors to be able to manipulate the whole system for personal growth,
So, this perception of low risks and high rewards can be essential motivating factors. In short ghost employment is achieved by a combination of financial incentives, resource manipulation, a desire to create an illusion of success and personal motivation.
So, understanding the motives is vital for the company to integrate efficient measures to avoid and find ghost employment, protect financial resources maintain the integrity of the workforce.
4. Consequence of Ghost Employment
Overall ghost employment carries major consequences both for a company that becomes a victim of the fraudulent practice and for individuals engaged in summarizing it. Let’s discover the significant consequences of ghost employment.
4.1. Financial Loss for the Company
Ghost employment results in financial loss for the affected company. Apart from this loss stems from many factors:
4.1.1. Salary and Advantages
In fact, the company pays a salary and also offers advantages to ghost employees who never contribute to actual work. It drains financial resources which can be passed down or the right operational expense or investment in development.
4.1.2. Resources Misallocation
On the whole, manipulating the company workforce size through ghost employment leads to resource misallocation. In general, a company allocates resources based on a fictitious headcount leads to inefficiency and waste of resources.
4.2. Legal Consequence
As a rule, being engaging in ghost employment leads to legal consequences:
4.2.1. Criminal Charge
In most cases, perpetrators of ghost employment can have criminal charges which include fraud, embezzlement, identity thefts and scams. Based on the fraud level individuals engaged are subject to imprisonment and fines.
4.2.2. Regulatory Penalty
Regulatory agencies impose fines and sanctions on companies found to be included in ghost employment practice especially if they fail to integrate appropriate internal controls.
5. Final Words
In summary, ghost employment is a term for a fraudulent and exploitative practice with slight consequences.
It results in financial losses for the company, legal problems for individuals, a tarnished reputation and a negative impact on workplaces, morale and cultures. Eliminating and addressing ghost employment is important for a company’s financial health and ethical integrity.
