UIF paid out more than R1bn in December

The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) says it paid out over R1 billion in benefits to 225 646 beneficiaries during the ‘busy December period’ to ensure that they could meet their financial obligations during and after the festive season. This is according to a statement issued on Wednesday.

Of the R1 billion:

• R876 million went towards unemployment benefits
• R88 million towards maternity and parental benefits
• R32 million towards dependants benefits, and
• R24 million towards illness benefits.

The UIF notes that since the inception of the Covid-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) in March 2020, the fund has paid out R62 billion to an estimated five million affected workers to date.

The Temporary Financial Relief Scheme established to assist workers affected by the July 2021 unrest has seen it disburse R21 million to 6 404 workers.

“I am very pleased that we were able to disburse the R1 billion to so many of our clients during the busy December period, and I have no doubt that this R1 billion pay out in benefits went a long way towards helping our clients to put food on the table during the festive break and planning for crucial items such as purchasing stationery and uniforms for children in the beginning of the new year as schools reopened around the country,” notes UIF Commissioner Teboho Maruping.

He says the fund remains committed to providing social security to UIF contributors and their beneficiaries in line with Section 27(1)(2) of The Constitution.

Read: Give us our UIF money

“To this end, I would also like to thank our dedicated UIF officials in all provinces who continue to make benefit payments to our clients possible,” Maruping adds.

“This year, the fund will redouble its efforts to improve service delivery and to continue paying our claims to qualifying clients and their beneficiaries as efficiently as possible.”

He says the UIF will enhance its ICT (information and communication technology) systems and launch a data-free app with a free USSD (unstructured supplementary service data) system along with other platforms to improve its service delivery to clients and stakeholders.

Nondumiso Lehutso is a Moneyweb intern.