The list of delinquent employers who owe a worker-employer quota in the Social Security Fund (CSS) totals $270,633,117.98, until June 2021, indicates the forty-second publication of delinquent employers, on the month of the CSS June 2021 quota.
The figure represents a decrease of $110,336,376.29, when compared to December 2020 when the debt totaled $380,969,494.27.
CSS also noted a reduction in the number of cases between the December 2020 and June 2021 releases of $10,300.
Other data presented was the national delinquency report in terms of scope of audits, penalty for scope of audits, penalty for registration and penalty for investigation. Here the delinquency audited by the different departments as of December 31, 2021 is contemplated.
The disclosure of the booklet is given on the legal basis of Organic Law No. 51 of the CSS, article 15, which speaks of the obligation to publish the list of defaulters and article 16.
The CSS explained that the list of delinquent employers is in order of oldest forms, and at the same time identified by: province (each province includes a summary of delinquencies), employer number (EMPL. No.), company name, RUC number or identity card, economic activity, amount of delinquent forms (P.MORO) and condition of the instance (COND), which means M: No agreement to pay, C: Payment agreement agreed, J: No arrangement to pay, E: Payment arrangement agreed.
Eduardo Gil, coordinator of the Social Security Commission of the National Council of Organized Workers (Conato), described as “hypocritical” that the business sector participates in the dialogues for the rescue of the CSS, when they register a high delinquency that directly affects income of the institution.
Gil mentioned that among the main risks of paying the non-quota is the right that the worker is denied to be attended by the CSS, the possibility of having their pensions on time and with the corresponding amounts.
He commented that there are measures that the CSS can currently take based on delinquency, however, he considered that he has not seen an action against employers who are in delinquency become effective, since the CSS regularly approves a series of forgiveness of interest, which accumulates this type of debt or a moratorium, and “therefore a permanent circle of impunity towards the business sector is created,” he said.
To solve the current problems, Conato created Bill 160, which establishes coercive measures towards delinquent employers, as well as measures to prevent the evasion of fees. The initiative is endorsed and awaiting debate in the National Assembly.
“The CSS must act. You can’t just stop publishing and verify the delinquency, you must use all the legal instruments so that the effective collection of the companies is given. In the same way, we call on the Assembly to start the debate on bill 160 presented by Conato, where additional measures are taken to counteract the evasion and allusion of fees by businessmen,” Gil told the newspaper La Panama Star.
The coordinator also criticized the publication time of the list of delinquent employees, since the law requires the CSS to publish the delinquency every three months, however, the data for June 2021 have been given in January 2022. “That it means that there is a terrible delay in terms of handling the information”, he mentioned.
