How to Report an Employer for Not Paying UIF?

Unemployment is a devastating issue that has become prominent in recent years. Although the South African government has introduced the SASSA SRD 350 grant for unemployed individuals, there are times when employees are unable to work as a result of being dismissed or retrenched by the employer.

The UIF fund is something that will help me go through such desperate times quite smoothly as luckily I knew the process to check the UIF status of my registration for the fund.

You can claim the benefits of the Unemployment Insurance Fund provided by the South African government right after you have been dismissed by the employer because of any reason, have become ill, or need maternity leave.

The non-payment of the UIF fund by the employer makes the employee ineligible to claim these benefits. Here is the complete procedure required for how to report an employer for not paying UIF.

Should Employer Register you for UIF?

In accordance with the 1996 Unemployment Insurance Act, the South African government has introduced the UIF fund which benefits those employees who have been affected by downsizing, have been terminated, or are unable to work due to health issues.

The money for the grant is not technically provided by the government. Instead, the employer and employee are bound by law to pay the amount for the UIF grant monthly.

If you are employed and work for more than twenty-four hours per month, then your employer is responsible not only for registering you for the UIF fund but also has to pay the amount required for it each month.

Each employee needs to be registered separately for the grant. The UIF fund is 2 percent of the total monthly salary of the employee. The employer only has to pay one percent of it on the behalf of the employee.

The employer has to be registered as an employer with the department of employment and labour. After registration of employees who work for more than 27 hours, whether they are South African nationals or are registered foreigners, the employer needs to pay the one percent on his behalf and have to deduct the other one percent from the monthly salary of the employee. This amount will get paid to SARS via EFT, approved bank, or eFiling.

How To Confirm That One Has Been Registered For The UIF Fund?

Although employers are bound by law to not just register but also pay the amount of the UIF fund each month within the time duration, still there are many cases in which they forget to pay.

Many employees seem to be unbothered about the UIF fund once they find out that the amount has been deducted from their monthly pay. The deduction of the amount doesn’t confirm that you have been registered for the fund or that your UIF fund is being paid regularly.

Employers might deduct the amount from your salary but fail to register or pay the amount to SARS. It is best for the employee to confirm it, instead of blindly trusting the employer. With the help of my UIF number, I was able to confirm my registration.

You will also need your UIF number in order to confirm your registration for the fund. If you don’t have it, there is no need to worry. You will either have to visit any local labour center or the official website of the UIF.

You will need to provide the personal information that the form asks for. Once you have submitted the form you will be allotted the UIF number. Then in order to confirm your registration for the UIF fund, you can visit any Labour department office. You will need to provide the officer with your 13-digit ID number along with the UIF number. The officer will confirm whether you are registered or not.

How To Report An Employer For Not Paying UIF?

The Detail Method

The employer is the one who is held responsible in case of non-payment of the UIF fund. Whether the employee is a domestic or commercial employee, they are eligible for the UIF fund if they work for more than 27 hours a month and are not receiving any other SRD grant. The employer is forced to obey the law as it is the right of the employer under the Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act, 2002, and the Unemployment Insurance Act, 2001.

The department of employment and labour is the organization that regulates the whole UIF fund registration and payments. The employer will have to pay the UIF monthly amount to the South African Revenue Service, SARS. If you find out that your employer has not been paying the UIF contribution to SARS, then you will have to report them by using the different UIF fraud hotline platforms.

Whom To Contact?

If your employer is not paying your UIF fund or is refusing to pay, then you can report them to the department of labour. With my previous employer, I faced this issue. I was quite reluctant to report as I was fearful of losing my job. A friend informed me about the reporting procedure. At the department of labour I found out that my UIF contribution was not paid by the employer to SARS.

I had to call in order to report my employer for non-payment while using the toll-free fraud hotline number. The employer audit unit will take action and calculate the penalty that the employer has to pay. This amount is in most cases 10 percent of the unpaid amount. The department of labour not only ensures the payment of the fund but also provides security to the employee too.

You can go to the labour center, but if you are not able to go for any reason, there are many other sources to file a report against your employer. You can visit the ufiling.labour.gov.za/uif/ website to provide the information to file a report against the employer. You can also call using 0800 212 799 or 080 003 0007 number.

You can also send an email to [email protected] in order to report the employer. You will need to give the information about your employer. The information might include the UIF reference number, name of the organization in which you have been working, address, and contact details. The rest will be taken care of by the Department of labour.

How To Check The UIF Status?

Sometimes you might fail to claim the UIF fund if the employer has not paid the UIF contribution on a monthly basis. The employer needs to pay the contribution that has been deducted each month within the first week.

Even if you are sure that you have been registered with the department of labour and employment, you must check your UIF status to make sure that your employer has paid your UIF fund contribution. Here is the method that worked for me.

1. First step is to go to the ufiling.labour.gov.za/uif/ website.
2. You will find two options on the main page. One is for registration and one is for login.If you have already been registered by the employer, then skip this step but if not then you first have to click on the register tab.
3. You will have to agree to the term of services and then a form will appear. You will have to enter your user name, full name, type of ID, ID number, and registration preference.
4. Once you have provided all the information, you will get registered with the department of labour.
5. Next step is to login to your uFiling account. For this, you have to select the login tab and enter your username and password.
6. You will have to click on view my UIF contribution. This will lead you to the option of getting a declaration. Once you select this option a whole list of your monthly UIF contribution that the employer had paid.
7. If the row for any month is in green color then it means your payment is clear, but if any row has red color font saying no information, then you might have to ask your employer for non-payment of the UIF fund for that specific month.

Conclusion

Many domestic as well as commercial employees have to face UIF fraud by their employers. I had to go through this once before, but thanks to employee-friendly services provided by the department of employment and labour I was able to claim the UIF benefits. Here I have listed all the details that will help you in how to report an employer for not paying UIF fund.