Sowetan reports that the Free State’s Kopanong local municipality has failed to pay an estimated R58m in pension fund contributions collected from municipal workers over the past six years to the workers’ pension fund.  

This emerged from an investigation by the Pension Funds Adjudicator, Muvhango Lukhaimane, following complaints by municipal workers.  Failure by employers to pay over contributions collected from salaries, as well the employers contributions, to pension funds contravenes the Pension Funds Act in what amounts to theft of employees’ money.  And the failure of the board of trustees and the administrator of the SA Local Authorities Pension Fund, Fairsure Administration, to take action to force the Kopanong municipality to pay over the money has much annoyed Lukhaimane, who has been campaigning against trustees and administrators who do nothing to stop employers who plunder members’ savings.  According to the adjudicator, the fund’s trustees ought to have advised the Financial Sector Conduct Authority of the municipality’s failure to pay contributions since March 2013 and should have taken action to remedy the nonpayment.  Lukhaimane has also been critical of the fund for failing to get the name of the person at the municipality who could be held personally liable for the nonpayment of contributions and whose assets could be attached if the money was not paid over.  She has ordered the municipality to pay the members’ arrears contributions to the fund, with interest.  The fund was further ordered to provide the members with a breakdown of their contributions and their latest benefit statements within eight weeks.

• Read more of Charlene Steenkamp’s report in Sowetan of 18 April 2019 at SA Labour News

Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page