The Unemployment Insurance Fund and the SA Road and Passenger Bargaining Council (SARPBAC) are in a dispute over money that hasn’t been paid out.
According to reports, only two of the 106 approved companies represented by the council have received UIF payments.
“At this stage, the Bargaining Council is being accused of withholding money up to the point where workers think the Bargaining Council is stealing their money. We haven’t received a cent. Employers are accused of withholding money and stealing money meanwhile employers haven’t received a cent from the Bargaining Council,” said SARPBAC General Secretary, Gary Wilson.
SARPBAC continued to say that the delay affects over 22,000 of its workers. The council will reportedly need around R100-million to offer its companies some relief during this economic crisis.
UIF Commissioner, Teboho Maruping, says, “When they applied at the beginning they sent us an account that was inactive. And I don’t think they might be aware that their account is inactive or has been deactivated.”
The council has denied these claims and says this delay has placed it and many other companies under severe strain.
The UIF says that it hopes to resolve these matters soon to avoid the unrest between workers and their employers. The state-owned entity says it’s been flooded with calls from thousands of workers anxiously waiting for their payouts.
Reports say they UIF has already paid out an estimated R9.4-billion to 123,000 companies during the lockdown.
