ESI will settle Covid-related jobless claims within 15 days

Formal sector workers registered under the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) scheme will receive Covid-19-related unemployment cash allowance within 15 days of filing the claim. The ESI Corporation released the revised unemployment allowance scheme Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana (ABVKY). “The payment shall be made in the bank account of the IP (insured person) within 15 days from the receipt of the claim. Aadhaar shall be used for identification,” the ESIC said in its circular. The decision to revise the guidelines was taken in a meeting of the ESIC chaired by Labour and Employment Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar in August. Workers unemployed during the pandemic are set to receive cash to the extent of 50 per cent of the wage (as against 25 per cent meant for ESI subscribers affected during the precovid times). It will be paid for a maximum of 90 days. The relief will be paid directly into the bank account of workers, who will be eligible to file the claim after 30 days of getting unemployed. The benefit can be availed of by workers who became unemployed from March 24 till December 31, 2020. Under the existing guidelines, such claims were required to be submitted through the employer. “Gangwar said claims can now be submitted directly (by workers),” according to a statement issued by the labour ministry. Workers will also be able to file the unemployment allowance claim online, according to the ESIC circular.