Businesses owing insurance face trouble

HA NOI – The capital's Social Insurance Office has completed procedures to file suits against 14 enterprises owing social and health insurance, the office deputy director Nguyen Duc Hoa told reporters yesterday.

The businesses will include those owing insurance of more than 12 months, Hoa said.

Many of these are profitable, but still deliberately neglected workers' insurance payments, he added.

In addition, many companies in the capital fail to pay social and health insurance as regulations have seriously affected workers' benefits and caused public concern.

Worse still, many employers took advantage of the loophole in the law to prolong insurance payments leaving Ha Noi with the biggest insurance debts in the country.

By the second quarter of this year, there were nearly 1,000 enterprises owing social and health insurance worth VND863.2 billion (US$41.1million), accounting for 6.2 per cent of the country total.

Statistics showed that there are 180 debtors of VND1 billion ($47,600) or above and 89 others owing insurance for more than two years worth VND200 billion ($9.5 million).

Among the bad debts, VIT Garments owed more than VND8.6 billion ($409,500) for 43 months, followed by Thang Long Bridge JSC with VND6.3 billion ($300,000) for 39 months and engineering and construction joint stock company Cienco 1 with VND5.2 billion ($247,600) for 50 months.

Hoa said his office would collaborate with relevant agencies to inspect the enterprises dodging, owing or deferring insurance.

We are determined to take legal action against the violators, Hoa confirmed. – VNS