BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - WITH 2024 on the horizon, the Social Security Board is set to ensure that all companies, whether large or self-employed entities, are being compliant with their obligation to the Board.
That comes as the Board has been publishing the names of owners and corporations that were brought before the courts in recent times for failing their obligations to the statutory agency.
While appearing on WINN FM’s ‘Island Tea’, the Corporate Communications Manager at Social Security, Kamilah Lawrence, reminded that compliance is critical since that is the only way the fund could be sustainable.
She pointed to the sources of funding for the payment of pension and other benefits: Investments and Contributions from both corporations and the self-employed.
“Compliance must follow in order for our Social Security fund to stay viable,” she told the hosts.
In emphasizing the need for compliance, Lawrence revealed that for 2022 alone, $130 million was paid out in benefits, which is less than what it collected for that year.
“It’s a lot! She exclaimed. “Collections last year weren’t a hundred million, and so you know we’re coming off of a COVID experience and, outside of our regular duty Social Security provided COVID relief, which benefited lots of us. Twenty-five million dollars was expended on that project, and that had nothing to do with Social Security benefits.”
That followed concerns by various administrations over the solvency of the fund. In many instances there were concerns that the fund could be depleted. And to tackle the challenges, the fund has been taking delinquent employers to court, with the names of the companies and employers being published following court hearings.
“So, we’ve been publishing, via our website, the names of the delinquent employers. So, if you want to see if your employer is there…[log on] monthly, and you would see the court’s judgments and what would have happened in court,” Lawerence disclosed.
As they prepare to head into the new year, the officials at Social Security will begin further policing the self-employed that continues to be a major sticking point.
“As we go into the new year, we need to be focused on new ways of getting to people, because we realise that we have an informal sector, meaning more persons are getting into self-employed work, and they’re not keeping their obligations to Social Security,” Lawrence explained.
The Social Security Board celebrated its 45th anniversary earlier this year and reiterated that it is in a healthy position, but cautioned that the Federation has an aging population which is being impacted by the declining birth rate.
For the new year, the Board is expected to be engaging with the populace on potential reforms to ensure its sustainability.
