Employers advised to pay NIS on time

EMPLOYERS are being urged to submit employees NIS contributions to the National Insurance Board  (NIB) on a timely basis to avoid delays in the settlement of claims. That was the advise yesterday from members of the National Insurance Appeals Tribunal who received their letters of appointment from Minister in the Ministry of Finance, Christine Sahadeo, at the Ministry of Finance, Port-of-Spain. Chairman of the ten member tribunal, Eugene Tsoi-a-Fatt, said it was the responsibility of employers to ensure contributions were paid on time, and it was the duty of the NIB to check to ascertain it was done.

He said the NIB needed to regularise the way information is gathered to assist the tribunal in doing its work efficiently. He said this was the main reason why matters are not resolved in a timely fashion. Minister Sahadeo, in responding to the appeal to employers, said during debate amendments to the National Insurance Act in Parliament recently, it was revealed that NIB is now required to reintroduce annual contribution statements to employees. Additionally, NIB identity cards will again be distributed. Sahadeo called for more cooperation between the tribunal and the NIB to reduce the processing time of claims. She also expressed hope that the Legislative Review arm of the Tribunal will examine existing legislation and make recommendations to make them more effective.

She said as part of offering quality service, there was need to make the tribunals services more readily available throughout the country, and to embark on a programme of public awareness to sensitise the population to the avenues available for appeal against decisions of the NIB. The Tribunal gets an average of 70 to 80 matters annually and 90 percent of these matters are determined. Currently there are 108 matters before the Tribunal, 51 of which cannot proceed because of lack of information from the NIB. The Tribunal is appointed by the President and comprises a Chairman and nine members, of which the government, business association and labour organisation nominate three each. The Chief Medical Officer is an ex-officio member to provide expert opinions on medical matters. The members of the Tribunal are Churchill Akaloo, Winston John, Clyde Seepersad Snr,  Kenneth Jones, Wayne Moze, Clarence Rambharat, Joanne Bourne-Shepherd, Owen Hinds and Jacqueline Jack.