No naming, shaming of employers by NIB

THE EDITOR: The National Workers Union notes that the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) has decided to resume naming and shaming of clients who are in rental and mortgage arrears.

This practice is also engaged in by the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), by the Integrity Commission when members of state boards and other public officials are not in compliance with their legal obligations and by certain financial houses. But when it comes to employers who are in arrears to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), it is a case of different strokes for different folks.

According to Section 40 of the National Insurance Act, failure to pay NIS contributions is a criminal offence. It states, “An employer who fails or neglects to pay or effect payment of contribution in respect of any person in his employment who is required to be insured under this Act, is liable on summary conviction to a fine of four thousand dollars and six months imprisonment and in the case of a continuing offence shall be liable in respect of each person for whom he neglected or failed to pay or effect payment of contribution, a further fine of one hundred dollars a day for each day that the offence continues after conviction.”

According to the 2021 Annual Report of the National Insurance Board (NIB), employers were in arrears of their contribution obligations to the tune of $424.7 million. This is a sizable chunk of money that could help to narrow the gap between contribution income and benefit payouts. While the NIB has taken some employers to court, none have been jailed and contribution arrears continue to grow.

It is clear that the NIB compliance department is not up to the task. In a statement contained in the 4th Report of the Joint Select Committee on Finance and Legal Affairs Inquiry into certain aspects of the NIS, it is stated, “The NIBTT reported that its compliance department was operating with 55 out of a total complement of 65 authorised officers. In order for this department to successfully conduct the aforementioned number of audits (8,642), the NIBTT indicated that an additional 15 officers were required.”

Those officers have not yet been hired.

One would think in such a situation the act of naming and shaming delinquent employers would be a good tactic to utilise to, at least, recover some of the monies that employers are back-squeezing.

But alas, even here the law comes down on the side of the employers. Section 32A sub-section (2) of the National Insurance Act prohibits the NIB from communicating the “affairs of any person having any dealing with the board or relating to the affairs of the board or any information furnished by an employer to the board under any regulation made under this Act.”

In a letter to parliamentarians dated February 1, 2021, the NWU urged parliamentarians to repeal section 32A sub-section (2) of the act. It is not surprising that this request has been met with a negative response. In TT politicians always privilege the interests of the employers over that of the working people. Of course there have been no riots, have there?

GERRY KANGALEE

on behalf of NWU