Trial for Waikato manager and his co-worker accused of fraud begins

A trial for two workers in the education sector charged with fraud began at Hamilton District Court today. Photo / File

A Waikato manager and his co-worker are being accused of backdating a document confirming a promotion and subsequent pay rise for a staffer, a jury has heard.

The manager and colleague are being trialled before a jury at Hamilton District Court facing on charge each of using a document for pecuniary advantage.

The pair, who have name and occupation suppression, are being heard by a jury of three men and nine women.

In his opening statement, crown prosecutor Duncan McWilliam told the jury the manager and his staffer acted dishonestly when they backdated a document for a promotion and subsequent pay increase to avoid the organisation's usual processes.

The document authorising the pay increase was signed off by the manager in early July 2016 - just days before he took up a new role.

But the crown claims the document was backdated and has email proof that it was not signed until the manager no longer worked at the organisation and had no authority to give her a pay rise.

It also claims his successor uncovered emails between the manager and worker in August and September 2016 that show he was working in the new role when he signed off the promotion.

The document outlining the pay rise was not submitted electronically to a payroll organisation until September. The first application was rejected because it was incomplete and it was resubmitted later that month.

The crown also claimed there were documents to show the manager's authority at the organisation was removed on July 22, 2016.

"He (manager) had no authority to authorise a pay rise for her, having left the (organisation)," McWilliam said.

McWilliam said the manager helped the worker commit the offence by authorising the pay rise.

The trial is expected to run for four days and four witnesses are to be called.

A manager at the payroll organisation was the first to give evidence and told how the document alerting them of the pay increase had not been received until September 7, 2016.

Judge Glen Marshall told the jury, at the start of the trial, to keep an open mind until they retired to deliberate what the verdict will be.

Warren Pyke is acting as defence counsel for the manager and Sharon Green is defence lawyer for the worker.