Skip to main content

National Insurance Scheme (NIS) Running out of Money?

Prime Minister Mia Mottley raised the alarm bell earlier in August 2022, that the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) needed an urgent fix. She did so after receiving a report from an actuarial expert Derek Osborne, who projected that the near $4 billion NIS Fund risks being depleted in about 12 years by 2034 if major reforms are not undertaken. The prime minister however stressed that while the NIS was currently not in crisis, if efforts weren't taken to assure it could keep providing benefits, it may reach that stage. 

Mr. Osborne, the Bahamian actuary expert tasked with assessing the health of the NIS, delivered the grim news Wednesday 10 August 2022, as he called on Barbadians to agree on a local solution to the threats facing the NIS. The announcement has been met with astonishment and disdain by Barbadians. Members of the public have been questioning the sincerity of government ministers who make statements like "we are in this together" while maintaining a pension arrangement which is extremely attractive when compared to the average qualifying citizen.  

According to some callers to Brass Tacks as well as on social media, while the pensionable age for members of parliament decreased over time to as low as 50 years of age, John Citizen's pensionable age continued to rise from 65 to 67, and now some were speculating that the Government plans to increase it further to 72 years of age. 

Mr. Osborne suggested that if nothing was done to correct the problem, the NIS's safety net for employees in Barbados would be removed from beneath them. He also sent a message to the self-employed, pointing out that because they have not paid into the NIS and may be in need of assistance in their later years, they ran the highest danger of retiring with no income. He emphasized that the number and variety of benefits handed out by the NIS, as well as the payments made to it, could not continue at the current rates. 

The Prime Minister also announced that town hall meetings would be held in strategic locations to provide an opportunity for persons to discuss the NIS problem and to offer possible solutions. To date there have been many suggestions ranging from increasing the pensionable age, to importing people, to increase the size of the insurance pool, to increasing the size of the contribution with the wealthier among us paying more and to setting up structures that will ensure that members of parliament cannot access NIS funds in the future. 

This problem is not unique to Barbados. Other countries in the Caribbean as well as in Europe and the USA with greater resources are experiencing similar challenges. One common element is that many countries have an aging population while another has to do with the general abuse of such funds. The birth rates have decreased, and the number of old people will soon surpass the number of young people in many populations. This has implications for the sustainability and viability of the fund. Although things might appear to be grim, I am confident that Barbados will find a solution to this problem. It may be painful, but a solution will be found. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Employee Goes Berserk and Explodes at the Rubis Coverley Service Station Pump in Barbados: Was This a Preventable Workplace Breakdown?

Image
A Workplace Commentary on the Rubis Coverley Incident By  Peter MacD Earle BSc, LLM, Employment Law Consultant On Friday, May 17, 2025, Barbadians awoke to disturbing news involving the aftermath of a workplace conflict that escalated dramatically. Daniel Arnold Vincent Belle, 38, a former employee of the Rubis Coverley gas station in Christ Church, appeared in the District “B” Magistrates’ Court and admitted to causing extensive damage to the station—an estimated $7,000 worth—just days after his dismissal from the company. The incident involved the smashing of a glass door, breaking two windows, damaging a display unit, and tearing off seven fuel pump nozzles. Surveillance footage led to Belle’s arrest in Oistins. While this act of destruction was clearly criminal, the context in which it occurred raises serious concerns about workplace conflict, employer responsibilities, and the role of mental health in employment relations. . Let me be clear from the outset: I do not have any a...
Read more

Barbados' Minimum Wage Time Bomb: Are Businesses Being Set Up to Fail?

Image
   Peter MacD Earle BSc, LLM Employment Law Leicester De Montfort Law School Effective June 1, 2025, Barbados will implement a new minimum wage of $420 per week, a 23.5% increase from the current $340. In addition, legislation proposes an automatic 2% annual wage increase starting in January 2026. But beneath this progressive façade lies a stark, structural truth: Barbados has neither the machinery to enforce the law nor the political will to protect the most vulnerable. While this policy signals social justice on paper, in practice it could collapse under its own contradictions—and set workers, employers, and the economy up for failure. ________________________________________ The Illusion of Legal Protection While the government trumpets the wage hike as a win for working-class families, Barbados remains woefully unequipped to enforce the new standard. Consider: • Thousands of workers never received the current $340 minimum wage. • Many will not receive the new $420 rate...
Read more

Former BWA Boss in Barbados Fired from WASA After $13.4M Plan Collapses

Image
  By Peter MacD Earle BSc. LLM | Employment Law Consultant | June 2025 From BWA to WASA: The Rise and Fall of Keithroy Halliday St. Kitts-born Keithroy Halliday was appointed General Manager of the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) on February 15, 2017, bringing a strong track record in strategic leadership and regional public sector reform. Over the next seven years, he would become a defining figure in the BWA’s modernization efforts—managing national emergencies such as the South Coast sewage crisis and spearheading an island-wide mains replacement initiative. By 2020, Halliday had risen to Acting Chief Executive Officer, a role he held during a period of deep organizational restructuring. His resignation in August 2024 marked the end of a significant chapter in the BWA’s evolution—and the beginning of a controversial new role abroad as CEO of Trinidad and Tobago’s Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA), from which he would be abruptly dismissed less than a year later amid sweeping po...
Read more