watch the space
12 April 2006
In a bold move aimed at putting the Compensation Fund (CF) back on track,
Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana has once again announced a major
restructuring of the Fund, which will include among other things an appointment
of the new Commissioner.
In his last weekâs response from the DAâs request that an investigation into
the Fundâs inefficiencies should be conducted, the Minister pointed out that
DAâs request was outdated in the sense that the Department had already
instituted its own probe more than a year ago.
The process resulted in the firing of Commissioner Bongiwe Magojo, and that
her matter was still in the hands of the Scorpions for further
investigation.
âThe Compensation Fund acknowledges that it is experiencing operational
challenges due to disparate operational systems, which should be improved. The
Fund has so far embarked on numerous strategies to deal with the backlog it
currently experiences and this is beginning to bear results,â he said.
The Fund received almost 1 084 668 claims since 2000. During the financial
years 2004/05 and 2005/06, the number of finalised compensation claims has gone
up tremendously. Of the claims reported between 2000 and 2003 a total of 485
722 claims were finalised as compared to 218 575 of the claims reported between
2004 and 2005.
The Minister said these were achieved as a result of short-term
interventions like increasing the staff complement by appointing contract
workers and training them to process claims.
Dedicated teams dealing with backlog claims, medical professionals were
appointed to assist in giving medical advice; these include appointment of
doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and an
orthotist.
The capacity at the provincial offices was strengthened by the appointment
of additional staff. The provinces are assisting the clients at the point of
entry, train them and collect outstanding information so that only complete
claims, which are ready for payment are sent to head office.
A new enquiry system was introduced and rolled out to all the provincial
offices and labour centres. The procedures for the submission of medical bills
by service providers were streamlined.
Big service providers, who regularly see Compensation for Occupational
Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA) patients (like big employers, hospitals,
groups of radiology practices, and others), have been approached by the Fund to
form strategic partnerships in terms of submitting valid claims and eliminating
duplicates.
âThe management reforms and restructuring of the CF will result in improved
operational efficiency and service delivery. The reforms will be aimed at
re-focusing the Compensation Fund and improving its service delivery
capacity.
âStreamlining our Business Processes and Improved Claims Management systems
to improve operational efficiency is part of the process,â he said.
âImproved access to the Compensation Fund services, which will include
decentralisation of services to labour centres and provincial offices, and
electronic document submission is another key intervention.
âIn essence, the Compensation Fund acknowledges its problems and is working
hard to overcome them. Improved service delivery and client satisfaction are of
utmost importance and everything will be done to ensure that we are in line
with the Batho Pele Principles,â he said.
âWhile the DA may be thinking that they have discovered a secret, we
realised this a long time ago and put in place mechanisms to correct the
situation. For now I can only advise the DA to hold its horses and watch the
space,â he said.
Enquiries:
Mokgadi Pela
Cell: 082 808 2168
Issued by: Department of Labour
12 April 2006
