BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AS severance claims continue to increase, the Government is once again urging employers to pay social security for their staff, as millions of dollars are being unpaid to the fund.
In providing an update on the severance and claims under the programme, Prime Minister Dr. Timothy Harris made the announcement, among others.
He explained that millions of dollars are outstanding as a result of unpaid contributions to the Severance Fund, and it is against that backdrop he announced that the Social Security Board would commence legal action against delinquent employers.
The Prime Minister encouraged the delinquent employers to make payment plans with the Board to save themselves the “embarrassment and expense of a court trial”.
That announcement comes against the backdrop of the Cabinet approving payouts for those claims that have been sitting at the Social Security Board for several months due to no severance being remitted.
“We will also provide an advance payment to persons whose claims have not yet processed to allow them to meet their most urgent needs,” Dr. Harris declared.
According to Dr. Harris, the Financial Secretary is currently working with the relevant stakeholders to develop the necessary computation to make it work.
“What the Cabinet has committed [is] that the Government will intervene, provide some interim relief to allow persons to meet some of their most urgent needs while their claims are being processed,” noted Dr. Harris.
