ESIC extends unemployment benefits till June 2022

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In a move to cope with job losses due to the pandemic, Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) on Friday had extended the unemployment benefits for industrial workers till June next year, according to a report in Mint. The decision taken at the board meeting of the ESIC, comes on the back of benefit period expiring back in June. The new extensions will be valid from July 1, 2021 till June 30, 2022. ESIC subscribers who lost their jobs for any job will get an unemployment allowance at 50% of first three months salary.

Benefits to cover healthcare

The board is all set to cover almost six million gig and platform workers under the benefits of ESIC, which includes OPD service to tertiary care health benefits.

A person who is insured can directly submit a claim to the ESIC branch office, instead of the last employer with the payment made directly to the subscriber’s bank account.

The members of the board have also asked the ministry and the corporation to look at expanding the coverage of ESIC to all of India, especially the informal workers, according to the publication.

Employees contribute 0.75% of their basic salaries, while industrial employers contribute 3.25% for ESIC statutory deductions. Subscribers and their families would receive healthcare benefits from primary to tertiary care at ESIC hospitals and dispensaries across India.

It receives about Rs 16,745 crore a year from this statutory deduction, also it provides unemployment benefits to the subscribers.

Since the pandemic, more than 50,000 people have been covered under the scheme.