Sign on to pension scheme, informal sector workers urged
The General Manager, Investment and Development Division, at the Social Security and National Insurance (SSNIT), Mr Noel Addo has urged Ghanaians in the informal sector to sign on to the pension scheme.
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He also called on employees to ensure that their employers paid the exact amounts deducted from their salaries to the Trust enable them to earn more while on retirement.
Mr Addo who said this at a ground breaking ceremony in Accra, indicated that it was important for employees to insist on having their employers consolidate their basic salaries and allowances and pay their pensions on the total.
“SSNIT, the pensions of contributors could only be calculated on the amount received by the Trust on their behalf, but it would be in the interest of the employee to take a keen interest in what was deducted and paid to the Trust,” he said.
The call on employees to be more interested in the amount paid on their behalf comes at a time when many workers continue to agitate for higher pensions to be paid to them when they go on retirement.
They argue that in spite of the number of years they work or contribute to the scheme, they are normally given paltry sums which to them did not match what they contributed.
Many workers either advertently or inadvertently pay lip-service to the value of the scheme while they are in active service. They become agitated and tend to delve into the issues only when they are about to go on pension.
There have been reports that clearly indicate that many workers deliberately connive with their employers to reduce the amount of money on which the pension deductions are calculated.
Others are also known to ring-fence their huge allowances and allow for the deductions to be made on only their basic salaries and exempting their allowances, which are often bigger.
Police Post
Meanwhile, SSNIT and the Ghana Police Service have performed a sod-cutting ceremony for the construction of 40 new police posts across the country.
Mr Addo said the project which was expected to cost between GH¢19,000 to GH¢130,000, would help increase police visibility and curb the crime rate in the country.
He said the Trust responded to an appeal made by the Ghana Police Service to help it construct police posts across the country in order to help the service combat crime.
The Director-General in-Charge Technical of the Ghana Police Service, Commissioner of Police (COP), Mr Frank Adu Poku, for his part expressed gratitude to the Trust for its continues support towards the maintenance of security in the country.
He challenged corporate Ghana and individuals to emulate the good example of SSNIT to help improve security, saying that “security is a shared responsibility”.