Direct deposit delay affected over 1,700 employees, including first responders, County Council members and other elected officials
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
About 1,757 Beaufort County employees expecting direct deposits did not receive their pay on schedule Friday morning after a problem with the county’s payroll process delayed payments to workers across county government.
The delay affected employees who receive their pay through direct deposit, including first responders, Beaufort County Council and other elected officials. Employees receiving paper checks were not affected.
By Friday afternoon, Beaufort County said the problem had been resolved, and employees should see their direct deposits by the end of the day.
However, at least some employees were still waiting for their money late Friday afternoon.
Beaufort County Public Information Officer Hannah Nichols said many employees had already received their deposits.
“We have every reason to expect that employees will receive their pay today, as expected and as defined by Beaufort County policy,” Nichols said.
What happened
The county said its payroll was processed on time and the bank file necessary for transmitting the direct deposits was prepared. However, according to Nichols, “a staff emergency kept the bank file process from being completed on its usual timeline.”
The county did not provide additional details about the staff emergency.
Officials said the delay did not involve the county’s financial institution, a third-party payroll processor, a cybersecurity incident or unauthorized access to county financial systems.
The problem was identified before the start of business Friday morning, according to the county. A team from the Finance/Payroll, Treasurer and Administration offices worked throughout the day to resolve it.
Beaufort County Councilman Joe Passiment, who was also among those who did not receive his expected deposit Friday morning, told The Island News earlier in the day that he had been told someone in the Finance Department failed to upload the payroll information needed to send the payments to employees’ banks.
“Someone in the finance department failed to upload the payroll information that sends it out to all of the banks,” Passiment said.
Passiment’s description came before the county released its more detailed explanation of the delay.
Employees notified Friday morning
Employees received an email from Beaufort County Administration at 8:21 a.m. Friday notifying them of the problem.
“Please be advised that payroll has been delayed today, August 21,” the email said. “Finance staff is working on a solution, and we will provide an update once we have more information.”
A second email was sent at 1:54 p.m. with the subject line “UPDATE: Payroll Delay Resolved.”
“We know you are used to seeing funds in your account in the morning on payday, and we apologize for the delay and inconvenience caused by the processing of payroll this week,” the email said.
Employees were told the issue had been resolved and that all direct deposits should appear in their accounts by the end of Friday. Those experiencing problems beyond Friday were instructed to contact Beaufort County Finance.
Council members went unpaid, too
Beaufort County Council Chair Alice Howard said council members experienced the same delay as other employees.
“The County’s payroll was processed on time, and that is all I will say regarding that portion of the process,” Howard said in a statement.
Howard said county employees need to be able to rely on being paid accurately and on time.
“Our employees are Beaufort County’s greatest asset, and we recognize the importance of ensuring they can depend on their pay being delivered accurately and on time,” Howard said.
She said Council worked directly with County Administration throughout the day to address the problem.
Councilman York Glover, who said he was not initially aware of the payroll problem when contacted by The Island News, expressed particular concern for county workers who rely on each paycheck to meet their expenses.
“There are a lot of folks that live from payday to payday,” Glover said. “That’s unacceptable.”
Passiment similarly acknowledged the financial consequences a delayed paycheck could have for employees.
“Obviously it is a concern,” Passiment said. “Obviously we know some people are very aware that they need the money as quickly as they can. And finance and county administration is doing what they can to solve it as quickly as possible.”
When asked whether the county would address overdraft fees or other financial consequences if employees did not receive their money, Passiment said it would have to be addressed if necessary.
“If it comes to that, certainly we’ll have that addressed, but I don’t think it’s going to come to that,” he said.
Rumors of walk-offs denied by county
As word of the payroll problem spread Friday, rumors began circulating that Parks and Recreation employees had walked off their worksites because they had not been paid and that employees at the Beaufort County Detention Center were considering doing the same.
The Island News asked Beaufort County directly about those reports.
Nichols denied that employees in either department had left their jobs or worksites because of the payroll delay.
“No employees in either Parks and Recreation or the Detention Center have left their job or worksite because of the payroll delay,” Nichols said.
She said the county had not experienced disruptions to its facilities, programs or services.
“Beaufort County Staff are professionals who provide a critical public safety service to this community, and we are grateful for their understanding and patience,” Nichols said.
‘Nobody should have to use an emergency fund’
A spouse of a Beaufort County employee, who spoke to The Island News on the condition of anonymity because of concerns about possible workplace retaliation, said the employee was still waiting for their pay Friday afternoon.
The employee did finally receive their paycheck late Friday.
The employee’s spouse said their household could withstand a delayed paycheck, but many county employees do not have that financial cushion.
“Our family, we’re fortunate enough to where, you know, if we go a week without another paycheck, we’ll survive,” they said. “But I know friends of ours, single parents, paycheck to paycheck.”
The spouse also pointed to households in which more than one family member works for Beaufort County, meaning a payroll problem could affect an entire household’s income at once.
“Nobody should have to use an emergency fund because a paycheck wasn’t given to you,” they said.
An anonymous source known to the reporter also told The Island News that Friday’s problem was not the first payroll delay experienced by county employees.
According to the source, EMS employees experienced a payroll delay on March 7, 2025. They said the problem was identified by an EMS administrator the day before payday and employees were notified, but some employees did not receive their pay until the following Tuesday. They said employees were never given an explanation for what caused the delay.
The Island News has not independently verified the reported March 2025 incident with Beaufort County.
Payroll delay comes amid Finance Department leadership changes
Friday’s payroll problem comes as Beaufort County’s Finance Department continues operating without a chief financial officer following the departure of former CFO Pinky Harriott earlier this year.
Harriott’s employment with Beaufort County ended May 12, while the county was in the middle of developing and approving its fiscal year 2027 budget.
At the time, county officials would only confirm that Harriott’s employment had ended and did not publicly say whether she resigned or was terminated, citing the matter as a personnel issue. Multiple sources familiar with the situation later told The Island News that Harriott was terminated.
Harriott had served as CFO since November 2024 after previously serving as the county’s budget director.
Her departure was followed by a series of closed-door County Council meetings. On June 1, Council voted unanimously to authorize an independent inquiry into departments and personnel overseen by County Administrator Michael Moore. The county has not publicly connected that inquiry to Harriott’s departure.
More than three months after Harriott left, the county has not filled the CFO position.
Beaufort County has not indicated that Harriott’s departure or the vacant CFO position contributed to Friday’s payroll delay.
County promises review
The county said all normal payroll deductions, including insurance, retirement, taxes, child support and other obligations, would be processed normally along with the delayed direct deposits.
Following resolution of the problem, county officials said they will conduct a formal after-action review to determine what occurred and establish additional protocols and safeguards intended to prevent a similar problem during future payroll cycles.
The county had not said Friday whether employees would be reimbursed for overdraft charges, late fees, returned payments or other expenses they may incur because their pay was delayed.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.