Workers at various concessions across Liberia are said to be celebrating the recent move by Labor Minister, Cllr. Cooper W. Kruah, Sr. that concession companies prepare and deliver retirement packages to their employees upon their retirement, and not just dump them on the National Social Security & Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP).
Minister Kruah, during a recent tour of Firestone Rubber Plantation, described as unacceptable, the practice by concessions in the country to just retire people and leave them with the National Social Security & Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP) with no benefit package from the employers.
He said he wants prior to retirees beginning their processes of receiving benefits from NASSCORP, immediate retirement packages be given to them for the number of years they worked for the concession companies, which would help their smooth transition into retirement while they engage with NASSCORP for their regular retirement/pension processes where required.
“We will push for this for our people. You can’t have people work for you all those years and you just retire them without any benefits from you, the employer. The government’s retirement policy is there, through the National Social Security & Welfare Corporation, yes, but there must be a benefit package for a person who spends years working for you,” Minister Kruah emphasized.
This proposal by the Ministry of Labor has been hugely welcomed by workers of Firestone and other concession companies around the country, with some describing it as an error of many years that is about to be corrected.
Many people, including lawmakers and human rights activists, have on many occasions debated this issue but this is the first time that the government, through the Ministry of Labor, is now taking steps to make it a reality.
The visit to Firestone is part of Minister Kruah’s tours of several concession companies and industrial sites, particularly the troubled spots, in line with President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s vision, through the ARREST agenda, to bring stability to the various concessions and boost productivity.