Minister Thulas Nxesi said in a media statement on Tuesday that applications for the Covid-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) benefits for May would open at midnight that night — but by Wednesday morning the website was still not live.
“This constitutes a ticking time-bomb ... It means that millions of wage earners face the prospect of receiving no income for May until the middle of June at the very earliest,” said DA labour spokesperson Michael Cardo at a media briefing on Wednesday.
Nxesi noted that by Tuesday the UIF had paid more than R15bn to beneficiaries within five weeks since the first payments were made on April 16. He commended the UIF for its response to the challenge, despite the difficulties, saying the money paid out to beneficiaries so far has had a direct impact on 3-million workers.
About a month ago, the UIF had about R137bn in investments, with the government indicating that R40bn would be earmarked for the payment of Ters benefits. They said they have been inundated with e-mails and phone calls by desperate employers and employees who have not received money from the UIF, without any explanation. They argued that Sars should be called in to take over making the payments for the UIF.
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