The Ministry of Labour and Social Security continued to provide support to the most vulnerable in the society.
Social Security Division
• Pension rate increased under the National Insurance Scheme, effective June 15. Full rate increased by 23 per cent, moving from $3,400 to $4,200 per week. The benefit for persons receiving three-quarter-rate pension was increased by 37 per cent, moving from $2,500.50 to $3,500 per week. Also, pensioners receiving half-rate pension saw a 76 per cent increase, moving from $1,700 to $3,000 per week.
• Effective April 1, the flat rate for the minimum weekly pension increased by 74 per cent, moving from $1,700 to $3,000.
• Twenty grade-10 students who are pursuing agricultural studies at secondary-level institutions in St. Catherine received a donation of $600,000 from Jamaican workers at Gebbers Farms in Washington in the United States (US).
• Families on the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) received an additional sum of $3,500 to help with back-to-school expenses for each child registered in a public school from grades one to 13.
• A total of $6.03 billion was expended on PATH benefit payments as of December 2023, while some $372 million was spent on Back to School expenses for 106,048 students.
• The Social Pension Programme disbursed payments totalling some $306,958,800 to elderly citizens and has approximately 14,657 participants registered in the Programme.
• The Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD) launched the Accessibility Checklist, which is designed to identify architectural and communication barriers encountered by persons with disabilities in private and public facilities.
• The Child Development Centre opened its doors in September to 223 children with developmental disabilities, who are now receiving special intervention in Kingston and Portland. Additionally, 60 children with mild to severe disabling conditions transitioned into special or regular primary education.
• 458 clients from PATH house- holds received entrepreneurship grants under the Steps to Work Programme totalling $73. 2 million.
• The Canada Fund for Local Initiatives approved a grant of more than Can$24,000 to expand the strategic engagement of rural women with disabilities in sustainable farming techniques.
• The Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities provided Rehabilitative Grant support valued at $ 21,926,180.75 to 382 persons with disabilities in Jamaica.
Labour Division
• Almost 10,000 workers were dispatched to Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme (SAWP).
• Effective June 1, the national minimum wage was increased from $9,000 to $13,000 per 40-hour work week.
• The minimum wage for industrial security guards was increased from $10,500 to $14,000 per week.