Unemployment Insurance Fund records a stellar performance
29 Jul 2011
THE Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), an entity of the Department of Labour has posted a hefty R9 billion surplus in the financial year ending March 2011 exceeding its target by R3 billion, the funds commissioner told a meeting today (Friday).
UIF Commissioner Boas Seruwe was addressing a staff meeting during the Labour department Director-General Nkosinathi Nhleko's visit to the fund's headquarters in Pretoria. Seruwe said the rise in the UIF's surplus has also seen an increase in its assets base.
"It's like we live in a palace. The fund has for the first time also posted a clean audit thanks to the work of hard working employees. We cannot afford to drop our guards. The fund need to continually devise innovative strategies to do better," said Seruwe that despite this stellar performance a number of challenges still exist.
Nhleko commended the UIF saying it occupies a strategic role to address the prevailing effects of the macro economic situation by providing a cushion to citizens losing jobs as a result of retrenchments and lay-offs. He said the challenge was how the department capacitates the fund with resources to do even better.
Seruwe attributed the rise in the surplus from increased revenue as a result of tightening of enforcement and compliance activity by the Department of Labour. He said more companies were beginning to comply with the law.
The commissioner said the fund had also taken a strategic policy decision two years ago to expose itself in the equity market. He said from an initial exposure of R1,3 billion the fund's investment in equities has grown to R8 billion. The fund also has investments in government bonds, parastals bonds and financial institutions.
At the end of March 2010 the fund's total assets were sitting at R44 billion and these have grown to a phenomenal rate of R56 billion in March 2011. UIF has 7,6 million people registered in its database ranging from chief executives, professionals to gardeners and domestic workers.
Seruwe said the fund provide hope to its contributors. Seruwe said the fund through decentralisation of functions has managed to reduce the turn around time in settling claims from seven weeks to five weeks. He said this approach will enable both employees and employers to lodge claims electronically without the effort of going to the offices. He said the new system was dynamic it that it enabled the department to deal with backlogs in claims as it allows for work to be moved from one labour centre to the next without any fuss.
Nhleko said the system could be improved further to settle claims from five weeks to less than 10 days. He said: "efficiency is one aspect we should always strive to achieve to ensure delivery".
Statement issued by the Department of Labour, July 29 2011
Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter
