HEART to abandon bogus tax, anticipates lawsuits from staff
Published:Wednesday | August 25, 2021 | 11:44 AM
Jovan Johnson, Senior Staff Reporter
The HEART/NSTA Trust is to abandon an illegal tax it imposed on travelling officers for decades and is anticipating lawsuits from aggrieved employees pushing for refunds.
Under its Fuel Allocation Policy, HEART substituted the benefit of mileage paid to travelling officers in the civil service for a fuel-based approach, where it advanced petrol (240 litres per month) and taxed the amounts consumed by each officer.
In government, mileage, which goes with vehicle upkeep, is tax free.
The policy breached finance ministry circulars and public sector staff orders, which do not permit the substitution.
In a final ruling, the ministry has ordered HEART to end the 30-year-old practice.
It instructed in March that the policy be suspended, which HEART did not do for months.
At one stage, Prime Minister Andrew Holness' office, which has oversight for the skills training agency, had to reprimand the organisation for not submitting information to the finance ministry.
READ: HEART hands over info on illegal tax
The reversal is the culmination of a process that started in 2015 when a senior officer questioned the legality of the fuel policy.
The finance ministry found that the policy is “ultra vires and should cease” as of August 31, reported Novelette Denton Prince, the acting managing director of HEART, on the decision she said was received on August 11.
She said HEART will disband its advance gas card by month-end and as of September 1, travelling officers will have to submit claims to be reimbursed for mileage for travel on official duties.
“This move to align with the government policy on travel allowances is a positive step for the organisation as it promotes transparency and fairness in compensation,” she told staff on Monday in a communiqué that followed a meeting with the more than 400 travelling officers last Thursday.
Refund
But some employees have other unresolved questions.
“The issue of refund was not fully considered at the meeting and I would love to know how they will deal with that. HEART was taking money from my salary that it was not authorised to do,” said an employee.
“There's a name for taking what does not belong to you.”
The Gleaner has asked HEART to address the issue of compensation but a response is yet to be provided.
A document shown to staff at last week's meeting indicated that the organisation was making provisions for potential lawsuits from affected employees including those who see the changes to their contracts as a loss of income.
Denton Prince did not field any questions from employees as she left the meeting shortly after her presentation for another engagement.
Acting senior director for corporate services, Clayton Panton, dealt with questions but there was no definitive position on potential refunds.
It is not clear how much in unauthorised taxes were collected over the years but the Jamaica Civil Service Association and the Jamaica Teachers' Association – which represent many of the officers – have insisted that those affected should be refunded.
The tax on the travel allowance is calculated in payroll deductions that are paid over to the Tax Administration Jamaica.
HEART currently employs over 1,500 persons and is funded by a tax on employers.
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