Draft
A COMPREHENSIVE SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM

The South African social security system has a long history of fragmentation due to apartheid discriminatory laws and policies. This resulted in the exclusion of the most vulnerable groups of society from social security coverage.

Social security is entrenched in section 27(1)(c) of the 1996 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The fundamental right to human dignity, equality and freedom underpins this right. The social security system in South Africa has four major elements, namely private savings,social insurance, social assistance and social relief.

The Constitution affords everyone the rights of access to social security, including, appropriate social assistance if they are unable to support themselves and their dependants. The State has an obligation to take reasonable legislative and other measures within its available resources, to achieve the progressive realisation of the right in question. Further than that the State has to respect, protect, promote and fulfil the right of access to social security. The right to equality provides that everyone is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and benefit of the law. The right to social security in section 27 appears to be comprehensive with regard to the scope of social protection, however social legislation is limited in its application.

The Department of Labour should be commended on the extensive promotion of the right to social insurance in as far as the inclusion and registration of domestic workers within the ambit of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). Be that as it may private savings and social insurance are, areas of social security that receive minimal focus from the State and these are the areas that are fragmented and exclusionary.

Most vulnerable and marginalised South Africans are denied access to social insurance and private savings. The vast number of the South African population is either unemployed or atypically employed and therefore not covered by the occupational based social insurance schemes. This therefore contributes to the reliance on State social assistance benefits. The harsh reality of State benefits is that they are only afforded to children, persons with disabilities and the elderly.

There has not been much emphasis on the protection and promotion nor fulfilment of the right to social insurance. Social and labour legislation in South Africa is exclusively extended to those who qualify as employees, thus excluding various groups of atypical workers who fall short of the employee qualification.

Migrant contract workers

The exclusion of migrant workers from social security is a question of concern. Migrant contract workers who have no employee benefits should be afforded such benefits. Employers and insurers should afford contract workers pension and provident fund cover.

Social Insurance and HIV/AIDS

(The Legal Department could assist with this aspect, I believe they had a workshop on this issue in May)

The White Paper in provision 24 provides that the spread of HIV/AIDS will lead to an increased demand for amongst other things, disability benefits and work related dependants’ benefits. Thus the scope of employee benefits should also include coverage for HIV/AIDS. "Individuals often negotiate for benefits directly with insurance companies, as opposed to the employers taking responsibility for this. This has left employees more vulnerable."

Job Creation and Job Retention

Joblessness has increased from 15% to 30% since 1995 and this has been a rapid fall in real incomes from work and has pushed more people into the informal sector and casual labour and some are unemployed. These groups of people are denied access to social security. Government jointly with business should institute and implement policies geared at employment creation. Further than that government should ensure that jobs are retained and regulate retrenchments at workplaces.

Self Reliance

The aspect of self reliance cannot be overemphasised. Persons who can afford to take care of their well being should be encouraged to protect themselves against social ills. Even though the State has a responsibility to guarantee its subjects a basic standard of living, however the State cannot accept sole responsibility for meeting the basic needs, hence there should be shared responsibility. Social security does not mean that people should entirely depend on the State, however the State is under an obligation to ensure that people are in a position to access social security. The State has an obligation to encourage its subjects to take responsibility for their own welfare through private savings and private insurance, hence there should be legislation that governs and regulates the use of private savings and private insurance schemes.

Wilfred Jenks, the former Director-General of the International Labour Organisation made a statement to the effect that "nothing in the history of social policy has transformed the life of the common man more radically than the assurance that, in the event of loss of income through accident, poor health, unemployment, death of the breadwinner or any other misfortune, he will not be forced into destitution."

Poverty Alleviation Programme

Policies and programmes especially those meant to alleviation poverty are not implemented effectively and diligently;

The Basic Income Grant (BIG)

Due to the high rate of poverty and inequality, the State should introduce the Basic Income Grant or any other measure, which will enable the poorest of the poor who are excluded from social security and social assistance to escape poverty and have some form of income. This income to households will enable everyone to meet basic subsistence needs and be able to live in accordance with human dignity. The grant would be retrieved from the tax system from middle income earners and higher income earners.

Child Support Grant

Though government has extended the age of Child Support Grant recipients to 14 by 2005. The Commission is of the view that the Child Support Grant should be extended to all children from 0-18. The extension of the grant merely caters for children who have already been in the mainstream of receiving the grant. It is therefore unlikely that some children will ever have access to the grant. A child aged 12 in 2003 will never have access to the grant.

The State should adhere to and comply with constitutional provisions as well as international instruments such as the CRC and the ICESCR which have been respectively ratified and signed by South Africa;
Policies and programmes especially those meant to alleviation poverty should be implemented effectively and diligently;
There should be mechanisms in place to address current problems that make the implementation of policies and programmes impossible or difficult; and
The CSG should be extended to cover all children from 0-18 years.

According to the White Paper, (provision 45, Chapter 7 of the White Paper for Social Welfare) the general long-term objective is to have an integrated and comprehensive social security system supported by the collective potential of existing social and development programmes. This would be supported by a well informed public, which is economically self reliant, in a country which has active labour market policies aiming at work for all, while accepting that all will not necessarily have formal employment. Where these broad goals cannot be met social assistance should be a reliable and accessible provider of last resort. A comprehensive and integrated social security policy is needed to give effect to a Constitutional right to social security. The Commission supports this position and would encourage government to implement, comply and adhere to the above mentioned provision.