Sickness benefits— the figures
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Iwrite in response to two articles that appeared in Commercial Motor 15-21 April with regard to JIC agreements.
First, under the headline "Insurance Sick Pay Shock" the article states that after 20 years service an employee is entitled to full basic pay for a maximum of 20 weeks. This never has been the case. In the West Midlands, when the sickness benefit on a group scheme was insurable (up to 1 February 1993) the maximum payment per week used to be £4020.
In the article "United Front", Dennis Mills gives the figure of £24 per week—a far cry from the correct figure of £4020 that used to be paid.
The current benefits scheme available to RI-IA members does not include sickness benefit since no insurance underwriters are prepared to take it on as a group scheme. This has come about as a result of the poor claims experience. Nobody regrets this more than we ck> but it is conunon knowledge that insurance companies are now avoiding any high risk market.
The current benefits scheme in the West Midlands includes a permanent disablement or death benefit of £25,000 ( a far cry fr im Dennis Mills' £8,500) and a loss of HGV licence benefit of .E4,000 (also a far cry from Dennis Mills' £700 to ..C.3,500).
The scheme we now have is the best available in a reducing market and it is disappointing that Dennis Mills should give such misleading information. Regretfully, the TGW1J still refuses to endorse the package even though they have researched the market extensively but have failed to find a better deal.
We are equally disappointed in Dennis Mills' assertion that the 11J1C benefits are "derisory and disgraceful". Having • given the correct figures for the West Midlands benefits package, we hope this sheds a different light on the matter. Michael Farmer Midlands district manager, Road Haulage Association, Tiptfm, West Midlands.