A total of 5 986 claims have been lodged with the Compensation Fund for persons having contracted the Covid-19 virus while at work.
Of this number, 3 782 claims have been submitted directly to the fund and a further 2 009 to Rand Mutual, while Federated Employers received 195 claims.
Rand Mutual, which operates under a licence granted by Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi, covers mostly workers in the mining, iron and steel industries.
Rand Mutual, having seen a sharp increase in claims, has paid out R3.3-million in dependant benefits, while the Compensation Fund has paid R419 182.85 in medical aid claims.
Rand Mutual has also disbursed R18 251 for burial costs.
Of the 3 782 claims received by the Compensation Fund, 2 074 were lodged in the Western Cape, 666 in the Eastern Cape, 481 in Gauteng, 435 in KwaZulu-Natal, 74 in Mpumalanga, 29 in North West, 20 in the Northern Cape and 3 in Limpopo.
The Compensation Fund has accepted liability for 2 296, which represents 60.7% of the claims received, and has repudiated 544, which is 14.4%. A further 942 await adjudication, which represents 24.9% of the claims received directly.
Of the 2 009 claims received by Rand Mutual, 1 530 claims were lodged in Gauteng, 154 in the Eastern Cape, 83 in KwaZulu-Natal, 64 in the Western Cape, 36 in North West, 19 in Limpopo, 56 in the Free State and 64 are unknown.
Of the total received so far, 1 869 (93%) are pending adjudication.
Federated Employers, which represents workers mostly in the construction sector, has received a total of 195 claims – mostly from Gauteng (110), but also from the Western Cape (31), KwaZulu-Natal (12), the Northern Cape (10), the North West (9), Free State (4) and Mpumalanga (3).