TERS Update and Claims for Workers Affected by Unrest

Today’s post covers the opening of TERS applications for new claim codes, as well as some information about the recently announced benefit program for workers affected by the recent civil unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.

TERS Update

Our previous TERS posts outlined the application structure and the opening of applications for claim code 1.

We are happy to announce that the UIF is now accepting applications for claim codes 2, 3, 4 and 5 on the TERS portal, which means that:

• Annexure A employers can lodge a claim for the period 16 March to 27 June 2021 (Claim code 2); and
• any employer can claim for employees who were unable to work due to age (Claim code 3), health issues (Claim code 4) or quarantine (Claim code 5) between 16 March and 25 July 2021.

Annexure A employers are able to use SimplePay’s TERS CSV Export to speed up the logging of employees for whom they are claiming, but the other claims mentioned in the second bullet point can only be completed by manual capture on the TERS portal.

If you have any questions about applications for the new claim codes, you can contact the UIF call centre on 0800 030 007.

Workers Affected by Unrest

In a recent media statement, the Department of Labour announced that the application process for Workers Affected By Unrest (WABUs) in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal will open on 25 August 2021.

You will need to apply for the WABUs benefit on behalf of your employees and can only do so if your business has recently closed directly due to destruction, damage or looting of your workplace. You will also need to:

• provide details of the reasons behind the closure of your workplace, including:
  • documentary proof of your submission of a report to the South African Police Services (SAPS), as well as proof that a case has been opened;
  • the case number; and
  • if applicable, proof of your submission and acknowledgement of an insurance claim.
• confirm your acceptance of the scheme and submit any further information required by the UIF commissioner.

Payments of the benefit will be de-linked from UIF benefits, so will not use up any of your employees’ earned UIF benefit credits. The WABU relief will be paid at a flat rate of R3 500 per employee and applications can be made on the TERS portal.

We hope that this information has proved helpful to you. If you have any questions about the application we would direct you to the UIF call centre on 0800 030 007.

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Keep well and stay safe

Team SimplePay