SSS releases P3 billion benefits for unemployed members

MANILA, Philippines — State-run Social Security System (SSS) has given out some P3 billion in benefits to unemployed members, most of whom lost their jobs to the pandemic.

Aurora Ignacio, former president and CEO of SSS, said the provident fund has issued P2.9 billion in unemployment benefits to around 216,000 members since March 2019.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, for his part, commended Ignacio with her accomplishments to serve SSS members, as well as pensioners, at the height of the pandemic.

Dominguez said Ignacio played a role in the success of the Small Business Wage Subsidy (SBWS) that was initiated in 2020.

More than P45 billion in wage subsidies were released to at least 3.1 million workers and 113,000 employers under the SBWS.

Dominguez also pointed to Ignacio’s efforts to shift SSS transactions to digital platforms as one of her legacies as head of the agency as its mobile app posted roughly 23 million downloads and recorded over 115 million processes.

Ignacio said that around three in every four SSS transactions were done through electronic and online channels.

“The SSS’ timely digital switch under the watch of Aurora Ignacio as its president and CEO has enabled the pension fund to continue doing business with its more than 40 million members with relative ease – and releasing on time the benefits due them – despite the mobility restrictions the government had to impose nationwide to contain the spread of COVID-19,” Dominguez said.

The pension fund manager has also negotiated the settlement of longstanding collectibles from another agency amounting to P4.8 billion, with P1.56 billion paid in cash as initial settlement.

Last week former mining executive Michael Regino was named by President Duterte as the new SSS president and CEO. In turn, Ignacio was moved to state-run Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp.