SSS to cover movie, television workers

THE Social Security System (SSS) will soon cover 1,600 movie and television industry workers after signing a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Katipunan ng mga Artistang Pilipino sa Pelikula at Telebisyon (KAPPT) or the Actors Guild of the Philippines last Friday.

The existing partnership dubbed as “ArtistaSSSya” will work on the compulsory coverage and remittance of SSS contributions of self-employed KAPPT members composed of actors, actresses, singers, producers, stage personalities, commercial artists, and stunt men.

“Art is the highest form of expression so we should take care of our people in the movie industry. We must ensure that they will have a secure future especially when they retire,” said Social Security Commission Chairman Amado Valdez who initiated the coverage of self-employed KAPPT members.

Under the agreement, SSS will designate an Account Officer (AO) who will conduct on-site registration of all qualified KAPPT members. The AO will also facilitate all SSS transactions, such as processing of registration forms; receipt of reports, application forms and other SSS documents; and enrollment to the Unified Multi-purpose Identification (UMID) Card.

KAPPT President Imelda A. Papin said that to encourage SSS membership, the association will pay for the initial contributions of its members.

“The board decided to pay the initial SSS contributions of the first 250 active members to encourage others to join so that each one of us can say na nakasandal na kami sa pader. It is a blessing that SSS provided us an office which will be home of Filipino artists,” Papin said. SSS