Monday, in an information note, Emmanuel Ménard, General Director of the National Old Age Insurance Office (ONA), writes that "following numerous complaints received to the ONA office relating to non-payment of monthly contributions by private companies and others, whose amounts were however regularly levied on employee salaries, the Directorate General of ONA hastens to invite these institutions to regularize their situation in the shortest possible time.

In an effort to protect the rights of employees against these repeated acts, offenses punishable under the Penal Code, the General Directorate instructed the Legal Service to take legal provisions to the competent judicial authorities, in order to quickly meet the demands of insured suffering for several years."

Emmanuel Ménard recalled that the provisions of the law, creating the National Old-age Insurance Office state :

"Art 178.- Are mandatory subject to the pension plan instituted by law :

• Employees of commercial enterprises, industrial or agricultural and in general any person who provides a manual or intellectual work for a fee in kind or in cash, anyone who rents his services to an employer under an express or implied contract ;

• Teachers and supervisors of private educational institutions, secular or religious ;

• The staff of private clinics and hospitals ;

• Those living in Haiti that, under a contract of employment or on travel or mission on behalf of their employers, performing abroad of work of any kind ;

• The Directors, administrators of companies, societies or industrial, commercial and agricultural establishments depending on their current job and not because of their character of shareholders or associates ;

• National working in Haiti on behalf of international institutions and foreign governments ;

• Anyone who receives a fixed salary of a company.

Art 214.- In case of late in the remittance of contributions, employers will personally pay to ONA, per month of delay, an increase of 10% of the amount of contributions due, without prejudice to other penalties provided by this Act."

"In order to avoid lawsuits against offenders, the Directorate General of ONA is at the disposal of all interested parties and guarantees them to continue to work to improve its services."

HL/ HaitiLibre