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BusinessLive reports that the National Treasury has expressed doubt about the feasibility of the proposal put forward by the SA Law Reform Commission advising the government to introduce a maternity support grant for poor pregnant women and to extend the benefits of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) to self-employed workers.
“Treasury appreciates these proposals but it is necessary to cost proposals at the time of development as it would have significant financial impacts on the resources available in the fiscus, given the current economic climate, but also for the UIF and the Compensation Fund and current contributors to these funds,” the National Treasury indicated. It added: “The discussion paper is not clear on how contributions would be sourced from prospective beneficiaries given that the informal nature of their work would make it difficult to trace UIF contributions for financing. It will be difficult for the UIF to ascertain the appropriate level of support without verifiable incomes for informal workers. The commission’s final report said the maternity support should be provided for six months of pregnancy and be registered in the name of the expectant mother. In addition, this help should be converted into a child support grant after the child was born. The commission also recommended that a definition of “self-employed worker” be added in the relevant sections of all the employment and labour legislation providing for state maternity and parental benefits.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Kabelo Khumalo at BusinessLive
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