More than a third of the annual earnings of 20 guards at the Hawai'i Youth Correctional Facility came from overtime in a recent fiscal year, and the facility does not have a system for monitoring sick leave and overtime pay, according to a state audit released yesterday.

In addition to the overtime costs, 20 corrections officers at the facility averaged nearly 17 days of sick leave and compensatory time during fiscal year 2004-05, according to the audit. In all, guards at the facility took almost 250 days of sick leave in that fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2005.

One officer earned $44,845 in overtime in addition to $36,494 in base pay. In fiscal year 2005, the facility paid $818,231 in overtime to the 54 guards at the Windward O'ahu facility, more than 52 percent of their base compensation.

The office of the auditor also found the facility does not closely monitor money sent to wards by family members or others and that stricter controls are needed on all fronts.

Kaleve Tufono-Iosefa, the facility administrator, did not return two messages seeking comment yesterday. Martha Torney, the acting executive director of the Office of Youth Services, the branch of the state Department of Human Services responsible for the youth prison, also did not return two messages seeking comment yesterday.

In issuing the report, state Auditor Marion Higa wrote that the state "recommended that the facility develop and implement a formal system of monitoring overtime and sick-leave usage among all employees concurrently to identify any patterns of abuse."

The auditor also pointed out the shortage of youth corrections officers at the facility.

"We found that high vacancy levels among the facility's YCOs and the inherently stressful nature of the work were the primary drivers of overtime costs and sick-leave usage," the report said.

The auditor's findings echo a report issued by the U.S. Department of Justice last year.

The report criticized staffing levels, saying it has been and continues to be a serious problem at HYCF.

During the Mother's Day weekend last year, a staff shortage forced youths to be placed in lockdown and some family visits had to be canceled, according to the findings.

Few youth correctional officers report for duty on weekends and as a result, many officers are forced to work extra shifts, according to the report.

The youth facility has been dogged by civil rights complaints, federal investigations and staffing problems for the last five years.

In July, a special monitor appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice released an 85-page report assessing how the state complied with an agreement reached in February 2006 addressing major violations uncovered by the department during an inspection in October 2004.

The Department of Justice gave the state three years to correct the problems.

The agreement has 53 provisions that are broken down into five categories: protection from harm (suicide prevention), training, access to medical and mental healthcare, special education and compliance and quality improvement.

Based on interviews with wards and HYCF staff and evaluations of policies and procedures, the two reported that the state was in "partial compliance" with 41 of the 53 provisions.

The report defined "partial compliance" as being in compliance, but that "substantial work remains." The state must be in "substantial compliance" in all 53 provisions at the end of the three years.

The monitor said the only category that the state is in substantial compliance with is the timeliness in providing special education to HYCF wards.

The state received noncompliance marks in the reporting of possible criminal violations by HYCF staff, isolation of wards, staffing, staff training and access to medical and mental healthcare.

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.