CABINET TO RECEIVE UPDATE SHORTLY ON CLAIMS FROM THE SEVERANCE FUND

Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 17, 2021 (SKNIS): The Federal Cabinet of Ministers is scheduled to receive an update on matters related to the Severance Fund from the Labour Commissioner on Monday, March 22, 2021.

Severance payments have been a critical issue for the government, which is keen to help qualifying residents in light of the economic challenges brought about by the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris said that the staff of the Department of Labour is “working hard” to process claims.

“We are dealing with a significant number of persons who have been made jobless as a result of COVID-19 and, so the process takes time,” he expressed on Leadership Matters on Tuesday, March 16.

One area for discussion is how the unprecedented number of claims can be processed more efficiently. A team from St. Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board is expected to meet with the Cabinet on Monday as well. The institution has data related to an employee’s work history, which factors into the claims process. The accountant general is also scheduled to be a part of this meeting according to the prime minister.

“We will have on Monday all of the critical partners involved in the processing of claims for severance and at the end of it we will be able to make an official statement as to where we are at, and of course how we are going to expedite not only second [payments] but first cheques for those who have not had,” Dr. Harris added.

Prime Minister Harris stated that the Federal Government has invested millions of dollars to “ease the burden” of thousands of residents across St. Kitts and Nevis during the global pandemic.
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