June cutoff for UIF payments
EASING BURDEN: 14M PEOPLE HELPED IN MAY ALONE
Payments intended as a stop-gap measure for three months, or until lockdown eased. Moneyweb
The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) will pay workers their Covid-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) benefit until the end of June.
Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi said this is per the initial directive of 26 March.
The payments were intended as a stop-gap measure for three months or until such time that lockdown restrictions were eased and the economy reopened.
“The payments by the UIF should be seen in the context of government-wide basket of services and interventions to ease the burden of the coronavirus.
“In the process and because this is unprecedented, a few mistakes occurred but detractors fail to see the magnitude of the work that has been done and the relief that it has brought to many people in our country,” Nxesi said.
Using the measure that one beneficiary is responsible for eight others, the amount distributed covered at least 14 million people in May alone.
“This is a real difference ... and is evidence to government’s commitment to make a real difference,” Nxesi said.
Eligible employers who had not yet received payment would be paid according to the same benefits structure once all the relevant documents and information was received. The department noted that as of 24 June, the fund had paid R8.4 billion to 149 120 employers who submitted applications on behalf of 2.04 million employees. In total, UIF had disbursed close to R28 billion since 16 April.
It says R770 million was paid directly into the bank accounts of the workers.
The total benefits amount for ordinary claims increased over the comparative period by 1.6% to R3.3 billion. Unfortunately, 965 751 employees were unable to receive benefits because of outstanding information from their employers.
“This translates to R4.2 billion ... and a further 1 197 employees have not been paid because the details were rejected by the banks and this amounts to R703 999,” Nxesi said.
This is evidence to government’s commitment