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NIS debacle… During a recent public consultation with the National Insurance Scheme, the Company’s Compliance Division came under fire after it was revealed that only 60% of Guyana’s workforce is paying contributions to the scheme.This is according to Head of the Insurance Scheme, Terry Thomas.During the meeting,cheap nfl jerseys, some members of the public blamed the Inspectors for the shortfall which they claimed has contributed to putting the Scheme in the position it is today. One of the major issues highlighted by members of the public was the failure of inspectors to track down non-compliant employers.However on that issue,wholesale jerseys, Thomas said while he is not being apologetic for the Scheme, he recognizes the need to get the remaining 40% of the workforce to pay their contributions as stipulated by the NIS laws.“We need to have the whole working population covered. It will be a larger percentage and our ability to fund our liability will be much easier,wholesale jerseys china,” Thomas said. He further reiterated the need to increase the Scheme’s compliance percentage, while noting that the Scheme’s internal mechanisms must be strengthened.“We have to strengthen compliance and in terms where there are leakages,cheap nfl jerseys online, we need to do more,” the General Manager noted.However,jerseys nfl wholesale, the sentiments about the Inspectors’ failure to do their job were met with harsh heckling by some of the Inspectors themselves who were present at the meeting.Mr. Earl John,cheap jerseys nfl wholesale, who has been around the NIS for decades said, in his opinion, the NIS Inspectors, ought not to be solely blamed for the current state of affairs of the NIS.“The inspectorate cannot stand up to the employers who are the powers that be, but at the same time, compliance is the essential exercise to be carried out but the inspectorates must be given the right tools to carry out their work, without political and other inference.”John’s statements were also strongly supported by former Member of Parliament Mr. Mervyn Williams.“You cannot strengthen compliance at the expense of your travelling officers since they have been benefitting from the same rate of travel for more than 20 years. They have been promised duty free concession; those promises have been elusive,cheap nfl jerseys china,” Williams pointed out.According to Williams,wholeslae cheap nfl jerseys china, the conditions under which the Inspectors are forced to work are less that conducive.“The commuting allowance which Inspectors used to receive has been stopped for more than 20 years…the necessary back up services such as transportation and communication is yet in the making,” Williams added.Further, there were some recommendations for Inspectors to be given powers to carry out arrests, during the execution of their investigations. To this end it was recommended that there be more collaboration between the NIS inspectors and the law enforcement agencies. |
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