ABUJA – Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has presented a cheque of N18,652,908.20, as death benefits to the family of an employee, who died in the course of official duty.
Barrister Oluwaseun Faleye, Managing Director of the Fund, however urged employers of labour to enrol in the Employees’ Compensation Scheme (ECS) and fulfil their obligations; so that more families could benefit from its safety net.
The NSITF boss noted that the cheque presentation highlighted the importance of employers’ role in the efforts to protect their employees and their dependents, as well as the success of ECS.
The managing director was represented at the occasion by Executive Director, Operations, NSITF, Hon Mojisola Alli-Macaulay.
He pointed out that all responsible employers concerned with the welfare of their employees were major stakeholders, who had a great role to play in the successes of ECS.
A statement by Deputy General Manager, Corporate Affairs, at NSITF, Alex Mede, said the managing director also highlighted some of the ways stakeholders could help.
He stated that they should encourage better safety practices by employees in the work place, and “minimise the risk of work-related injuries and/ or diseases as far as is practicable, even though the ECS is a no-fault scheme”.
The NSITF boss called for a proactive approach to reporting work-related injury or disease within the stipulated timelines to avoid penalties, while also supporting the fund in explanation of the ideals and benefits of the scheme to other stakeholders.
He advised that employers should re-assign injured or disabled employees to more suitable job functions within the organisations.
Faleye commended the Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria, the deceased employee’s employer, for their cordial relationship with NSITF, adding that both organisations are committed to promoting the principles of ECS, as enshrined in the ECA 2010.