Business
Trustfund Pensions Has 543,850 Contributors – Ag Head
The Acting Head, Business Development and Marketing, Trustfund Pensions Plc, Mr Maurice Ogar, has disclosed that the company has 543,850 contributors, 37, 000 beneficiaries and 10,000 retirees.
Ogar made the disclosure in Lagos while speaking at a one-day sensitisation programme held for textile workers.
It would be recalled that the programme was held under the aegis of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUGTWN) in collaboration with Trustfund, a pension fund administrator.
He explained that the programme was meant to enlighten workers in the textile and garment industry on the procedure and requirement of benefiting from the contributory pension scheme after retirement.
On the delays in getting benefit, Ogar explained that multiple registrations were part of a major challenges hindering effective administration of the scheme.
He said that there was also the challenge of poor compliance as some employers were not willing to allow their employees to join the scheme.
“Some organisations that allow their workers to register in the scheme fail to remit their contributions or do not allow them to contribute,“ Ogar said.
He said that some of the employees did not have evidence of contributions and lacked understanding of their statement of account.
Ogar advised workers to ensure that they were consistent with their remittance so that they would be able to get their entitlements when due.
Welcoming participants, Mrs Helen Da-Souza, Acting Managing Director of the company, said that 80 per cent of textile workers had registered with the company, saying that they had right to know their operations.
“You and your families deserve peace of mind and financial security on retirement.
“Labour has to ensure that the contributions of its members are safe and secured as those of us present as workers of today are pensioners of tomorrow,“ she said.
Mr Isa Aremu, NUGTWN’s General Secretary, suggested that employers should pay 12.5 per cent while workers should pay 2.5 per cent, contrary to the 7.5 per cent paid by each party.
Aremu said that the union decided to collaborate with Trustfund to know the status of its members whether their employers contributed, deducted or remitted.