Johannesburg - The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has paid out R2.1 billion to 457 546 workers in the North West province as part of the Covid-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (Covid-19 TERS) initiative.
The UIF also paid out a separate amount of R601 million to 139 629 workers and their beneficiaries as normal benefits related to either unemployment, maternity, illness, or death over the 2022/2023 financial year.
The entity has provided financial assistance to the workers who were affected by the pandemic since March 2022 to date. This includes workers who were cut from work, worked fewer hours, and due to illness.
The news was revealed on Tuesday during a media briefing that was hosted by the UIF at the Rio Hotel Casino and Convention Resort in Klerksdorp.
Speaking at the briefing, UIF Provincial Support Director, Allan Ragavaloo, said the R2,1 billion disbursed to workers came from the 6 963 Covid-19 TERS applications the entity received from the employers.
According to Ragavaloo, Mining, Personal Services, Trade, Construction, Banking, Professional Services, Iron, Agriculture, Educational, and Charities were the sectors that received the lion’s share of the money.
He added that only R64 billion was paid out to at least five million workers nationally through the TERS.
Despite its effort to alleviate the distress, UIF manager, Smiso Nkosi, said their forensic auditors will continue to audit companies to ensure that the correct amounts of the Covid-19 TERS were paid to workers.
Nkosi said the R17,5 billion from the R64 billion paid to date through Covid-19 TERS was audited and verified as correct payments.
However, the audits discovered instances of fraud, where employers applied for ghost employees, inflated salaries, terminated employees, and applications by companies that were essential services who did not qualify because they were permitted to operate during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
Nkosi said the UIF has put measures in place to deal with employers who refused to follow procedures. The measures include:
- Referral to the Special Investigating Unit and Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (HAWKS) for criminal investigation.
- Refunding of all Covid-19 TERS funds.
- Blocking employers from the UIF’s service offerings.
- Blacklisting employers from doing business with the UIF.
Meanwhile, the UIF’s Risk and Fraud Unit in NW, Bernice Matlhako, disclosed that more than 20 suspects had been arrested through joint investigations for Covid-19 TERS-related fraud. Their matter was still in court.
“Two officials were dismissed, while another two are on suspension. A further five officials are currently undergoing disciplinary hearings. “We have a no-tolerance approach when it comes to fraud and corruption at the UIF and this is evident in how we deal with such matters,” Matlhako said.
She also mentioned that they will take disciplinary action against officials who are implicated in fraud cases as well as those who are alleged to be soliciting bribes from clients to expedite claims at labour centres in the province.