The labour ministry kicks off their 90-Day campaign to promote social security and pensions on July 15. LABOUR MINISTRY
The Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training will hold a July 19 tripartite meeting on the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) for the pension scheme. The pension scheme will be implemented from October 1.
The ministry is conducting a 90-day campaign to disseminate information about the social security fund before the pension deductions begin.
Heng Sophannarith, deputy director-general of the NSSF, told The Post on July 17 that the tripartite meeting was set to be attended by about 1,000 trade union and government representatives from across the country, and is meant to make sure that everyone clearly understands how the fund would work.
Sophannarith expected that because so much information had been shared, the implementation of the sub-decree on pensions under the Labor Law would run smoothly and successfully for the benefit of the citizens of the future.
“We have already held three or four meetings with unions and employers’ representatives. It is clear that once their questions have been answered and they understand the way the system will work, they have applauded its introduction. We expect that after we complete this 90-day campaign, pension implementation will happen without any problems,” he said.
Minister of Labour and Vocational Training Ith Samheng said that the new system is a better social security scheme that those used in most countries as the rate of contribution required from individual workers is relatively low.
Samheng was speaking at an event that was part of the campaign to share information about social security obligations and the benefits of pensions for all individuals covered by the labour law.
“For the first five years, employers and employees will contribute two per cent each respectively. Naturally, this may change to reflect a growing economy, of course,” he said.
Samheng, who is also the chairman of the NSSF board, said that the contribution by employers for this pension is a contribution towards the development of the country as well as a means to motivate employees to work harder.
The NSSF said that the 90 day campaign had already organized three meetings with participation from officials from the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training and trade unions.
It said the next campaign will be held with relevant tri-party stakeholders directly on the floors of factories and enterprises.
The minister said that employers and employer representatives must send their employees’ names to the NSSF to be registered. Employers must also share the details of the new pension scheme to all workers in their factories and companies, so that they fully understand it and the benefits it confers on them.
As of June, the NSSF had registered about 10,000 private sector enterprises, with about 2 million staff.
Ath Thorn, President of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Union, said because both employees and companies were paying contributions to the new fund, it was important for them to have a better understanding of just how it worked.
In the past, pension systems were only available to civil servants, while employees in the private sector were not paid, so he understood that comprehensive and broad dissemination was important. The union expected that when the workers in this sector paid contributions to the NSSF, they would receive appropriate benefits in return.
“A pension system for the private sector is what the union wanted. Personally, we have been pushing for five years to get it. The current policy is not 100 per cent good, but it is good for older workers. We need to know that the money we pay into the pension funds will be well managed. We’d also like to have seen some medical services included,” Thorn said.
He urged all employees and employers to participate in fulfilling their obligations, saying that only through the government could a scheme like this work.
