Mine employees want share of N$450 m pension surplus

FORMER employees of Rossing Uranium are challenging the mine’s pension fund to pay out an accumulated surplus in excess of N$450 million.

They say it is morally, legally and rightfully theirs, as former contributors to the fund. Winston Groenewald, who is heading a committee representing the former members of the fund, which is a Merger Fund of the old External Rossing Pension Fund and the previously registered Rossing Pension Fund (RPF), said they had consulted Namfisa (Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority) in this regard.Groenewald said that talks with Namfisa are ongoing, in an attempt to access information related to the RPF, the details of which have not been made available to members or former members of the fund.He said pensioners had never been invited to any meeting of the trustees, called to inform fund members of developments within the fund.Nor had they been consulted to gain insight into pensioners’ grievances.”Everybody in the country is talking about poverty alleviation and deprivation, but nobody is doing anything about it.These funds, can and will most definitely assist in the reduction of poverty, as most of these former workers are severely battling to make ends meet in terms of the current cost of living,” Groenewald said.He said that since 1992, Rossing Uranium had approved a ‘surplus contribution holiday’ (a period where contributions to the fund were suspended or terminated for both the employer and the employee) because of the vast surplus accumulation that already existed.Groenewald said that this ‘holiday’ amounted to N$258 million (in terms of contributions) that, according to him, did not affect the impressive continued growth of the surplus, which was in excess of N$450 million at the end of March last year.This surplus accumulation has been discussed at the meetings of the Rossing Board of Trustees and they are, according to Groenewald, looking at instituting a new Provident Fund by ‘winding up’ the RPF and changing the status of the Retirement Fund from a defined benefit scheme into a defined contribution scheme.”They would therefore be able to share the surplus only with existing members, although most of them have not contributed to the fund due to the contribution holiday,” Groenewald told The Namibian.He said Namfisa was currently preparing surplus legislation for Namibia and that the draft legislation would follow the route of the South African Second Amendment Act of 2001 of the Pension Funds Act, Act 24 of 1956.Groenewaldt handed The Namibian a document addressed to Namfisa, listing their grievances.He also quoted High and Supreme Court Cases in SA related to similar issues, where both judges explicitly argued that the employer was not entitled to the proceeds of a surplus accumulation within a pension fund, as this principle was contradictory to the objects of the Pension Fund Act of 1956 (which is the same legislation applicable in Namibia).”We are hoping that the trustees (or employer) would consider these rulings so that we could be apportioned that which is morally, legally and rightfully ours,” Groenewald said, adding that another important meeting would take place between the committee and Namfisa in Windhoek tomorrow.The Namibian attempted to contact several members of the RPF Board of Trustees yesterday, including the Chairman, Hosea Angula, for comment.Messages were left, however none had responded by the time of going to print.Rossing PRO Alwyn Lubbe was said to be ‘busy in a workshop’.In the meantime, The Namibian understands from reliable sources within Rossing, who call themselves ‘current employees’, that the issue is regarded as “very delicate” and that they too are waiting for answers.Winston Groenewald, who is heading a committee representing the former members of the fund, which is a Merger Fund of the old External Rossing Pension Fund and the previously registered Rossing Pension Fund (RPF), said they had consulted Namfisa (Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority) in this regard.Groenewald said that talks with Namfisa are ongoing, in an attempt to access information related to the RPF, the details of which have not been made available to members or former members of the fund.He said pensioners had never been invited to any meeting of the trustees, called to inform fund members of developments within the fund.Nor had they been consulted to gain insight into pensioners’ grievances.”Everybody in the country is talking about poverty alleviation and deprivation, but nobody is doing anything about it.These funds, can and will most definitely assist in the reduction of poverty, as most of these former workers are severely battling to make ends meet in terms of the current cost of living,” Groenewald said.He said that since 1992, Rossing Uranium had approved a ‘surplus contribution holiday’ (a period where contributions to the fund were suspended or terminated for both the employer and the employee) because of the vast surplus accumulation that already existed.Groenewald said that this ‘holiday’ amounted to N$258 million (in terms of contributions) that, according to him, did not affect the impressive continued growth of the surplus, which was in excess of N$450 million at the end of March last year.This surplus accumulation has been discussed at the meetings of the Rossing Board of Trustees and they are, according to Groenewald, looking at instituting a new Provident Fund by ‘winding up’ the RPF and changing the status of the Retirement Fund from a defined benefit scheme into a defined contribution scheme.”They would therefore be able to share the surplus only with existing members, although most of them have not contributed to the fund due to the contribution holiday,” Groenewald told The Namibian.He said Namfisa was currently preparing surplus legislation for Namibia and that the draft legislation would follow the route of the South African Second Amendment Act of 2001 of the Pension Funds Act, Act 24 of 1956.Groenewaldt handed The Namibian a document addressed to Namfisa, listing their grievances.He also quoted High and Supreme Court Cases in SA related to similar issues, where both judges explicitly argued that the employer was not entitled to the proceeds of a surplus accumulation within a pension fund, as this principle was contradictory to the objects of the Pension Fund Act of 1956 (which is the same legislation applicable in Namibia).”We are hoping that the trustees (or employer) would consider these rulings so that we could be apportioned that which is morally, legally and rightfully ours,” Groenewald said, adding that another important meeting would take place between the committee and Namfisa in Windhoek tomorrow.The Namibian attempted to contact several members of the RPF Board of Trustees yesterday, including the Chairman, Hosea Angula, for comment.Messages were left, however none had responded by the time of going to print.Rossing PRO Alwyn Lubbe was said to be ‘busy in a workshop’.In the meantime, The Namibian understands from reliable sources within Rossing, who call themselves ‘current employees’, that the issue is regarded as “very delicate” and that they too are waiting for answers.

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