PM On Unemployment Assistance

It is unclear when the government’s announced unemployment assistance program will begin as the number of unemployed in The Bahamas grows due to the global economic slowdown.

"Nothing has changed from the last time I spoke, " said Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham yesterday while answering media questions at Atlantis after addressing an MBA conference. "And nothing will change on it. I said that we’re doing an actuarial study of it; that we’re going to have to amend some of the regulations in Parliament; and that we should do so during the course of this year and that remains the position."

During his address to the nation on the state of the economy in November, Mr. Ingraham announced the programme to be administered by the National Insurance Board.

"My Government will, therefore, cause to be allocated some of the excess funds accumulated in the Medical Benefit Branch of the NIB Fund to provide weekly unemployment assistance payments to workers who have recently become unemployed or placed on reduced work-weeks," said the Prime Minister during the address.

"Since these payments are being financed from the excess in the former Industrial Benefit Branch, the sustainability of future pensions will not be affected. To benefit under this programme, a person must have been unemployed for a specific period of time and a contributor to NIB for a minimum number of years. Other rules and stipulations will be formulated prior to the introduction of this plan."

During his Meet the Press news conference on November 30 he mentioned the actuarial study and the necessity of amending laws in Parliament.

With more than one thousand worker having been laid off since the Prime Minister initially made the unemployment insurance announcement, however, many wonder when the assistance programme will begin to help those out of work.

No such scheme currently exists in The Bahamas.

Mr. Ingraham has previously emphasized the unemployment insurance programme will be for those who made NIB payments before losing their jobs.

"It will be in respect to persons who were working before and have lost their jobs [and] who have worked for a period of time before the application for benefit to National Insurance takes place, and they would’ve had to have contributions made," said the Meet the Press news conference.