"Benefit payment is accurate" – SSNIT suppresses allegations of organized labor

Company News of Monday, March 25, 2019

Source: Myjoyonline.com

2019-03-25

The Social Security and National Insurance Fund (SSNIT) refuted the badertion that it misinterpreted the pension law and paid low premiums to contributors.

Justice Justice Yankson, secretary general of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), was quoted in the Ghanaian Times state newspaper, saying the situation had worsened the situation of pensioners.

"The authors of the law indicated that the lump sum amounted to 25% of the monthly pensions for 144 months, while the SSNIT calculated it at 25% of monthly pensions for 83 months instead of 144. The difference between L & # 39; application and non-application 41.9% of the amount of the lump sum annuity ", quoted Dr. Yankson.

In addition, the Secretary General of the Congress of Trade Unions (TUC), Yaw Baah, reportedly said that there were many challenges to be met.

"He said the SSNIT posed governance and accountability issues, hence the need to account for how pensions are calculated before reaching the final figure.

"Mr Baah stressed that it was important to solve these problems by January 2020 so that retirees would not be negatively affected, because the level 2 system would then be active and retirees could be deceived by the calculation of previous credits, "the newspaper reported.

However, in a statement released on Sunday, SSNIT management said the claims were unfounded because the Trust had not changed the way benefits were calculated.

"The SSNIT calculates benefits accurately, in accordance with (PNDCL 247, Act 766 and Act 883) and sound financial and actuarial principles and practices. The SSNIT has not changed the way benefits are calculated since these laws came into force, "says the response of the General Affairs Service of the SSNIT.

Read the complete rebuttal of SSNIT below.

SUBJECT: ORGANIZED WORKERS ACCUSED OF LOW RIGHT TO PENSION

March 24, 2019

The Social Security Directorate and the National Social Insurance Fund (SSNIT) have taken note of the publications published in the editions of March 20 and 21, 2019 of the Ghanaian Times and Daily Graphic newspapers, and disseminated by various media.

The SSNIT wishes to reply as follows:

The SSNIT calculates benefits accurately, in accordance with (PNDCL 247, Act 766 and Act 883) and sound financial and actuarial principles and practices.

The SSNIT has not changed the method of calculating benefits since the coming into force of these laws.

The SSNIT, which is regulated by the National Pension Regulatory Authority (NPRA), operates in a transparent administration and is governed by a competent board of directors composed of four (4) members of the labor movement, two ( 2) representatives of the Ghana Employers' Association, one (1) representative of the National Pensioners Association, one (1) representative of the Ministry of Finance, a representative of the Security Services, a chairman of the board of directors , a director general and two (2) persons appointed by the government.

SSNIT management, since last year, has hired unionized workers on issues raised in relation to the calculation of benefits.

The issues were submitted to NPRA by the SSNIT and the unions for review and guidance.

SSNIT is waiting for NPRA decisions on these issues and would be guided by the regulator's guidelines.

We take this opportunity to badure all contributors and retirees of the SSNIT that their contributions and pensions are secure and that their benefits are calculated in accordance with the law.

Published by the General Affairs Department of SSNIT.