Pharsyde is doing a series of blog posts designed specifically to raise awareness with regards to statutory submissions. Business ownership overs a wide-range and long list of responsibilities and it is not uncommon for a small business owner to be unaware of the extent of his legal requirements. These posts cover the common statutory submissions: what they are, why they exist and when they are due. If you need more detail about a specific submission or help in getting it right, please give us a shout – we would be happy to go through them in detail with you.
COID stands for Compensation of Occupational Injuries and Diseases. It was previously referred to as Workmen’s Compensation and the department overseeing the fund is the Compensation Commission.
Every business in South Africa that employees one or more person is legally required to register with the fund. The fund covers an employee who is:
- Permanently employed
- A domestic worker in a boarding house
- An apprentice or trainee farm worker
- A worker paid by a labour agency
In the event of an employee sustaining a work-related injury, disease or death, the fund will compensate the employee or their family accordingly. This contribution is for the employer only, a business is not allowed to recoup the cost of the contribution from an employee. As an employer, you are required to register with the fund and submit your annual payroll totals to them. Your fund contribution is determined by your industry – an industry with a relatively low-risk work environment (such as accounting) will pay a much lower percentage to the fund than an industry with a high-risk work environment (such as mining).
The Return of Earnings is due to the Compensation Commissioner every year and can be done online, here.
The submission portal opens on the 15th of April and you have until the 15th of May to complete the submission. You provide the Commission with your total number of employees and their total earnings for the year just completed, plus you provide them with an estimate for the year in progress.
The system will then automatically calculate your amount due and give you your liability figure with a payment reference. Payment is due to the fund within 15 days of the submission. If one of your employees is ever injured on the job, then you can submit a claim on their behalf here.
The Commission tends to be slow and bureaucratic, but they are very fair. If your employee has a legitimate claim then they definitely will receive compensation.
Still find it confusing?
You can download the guide here, you can find the full Act, here. And on this link, you will find the full list of all the Labour Department’s “How To” guides related to the fund.
Or you can give us a shout for a coffee and a chat.
