Letters for Tuesday November 16, 2021

Dear Editor,

A letter to the editor (opinion piece) in Cook Islands News published on Thursday, November 11 (Abusing government’s wage subsidy scheme) raised some concerns regarding the wage subsidy programme and whether the subsidy was being paid to employees fairly in particular.

In exchange for receiving the wage subsidy, employers have a number of obligations they are subjected to, which include how wage rates and hours worked can be adjusted to reflect changes in business. In particular, these changes need to be with the written agreement of the employee.

There has previously been information provided in both a Q&A sheet available on the MFEM website (http://www.mfem.gov.ck/images/ECON/COVID19_Wage_subsidy_FAQ.pdf) and by the Minister of Finance that where a worker is contracted at a wage rate above minimum wage, keeping that wage rate (as much as possible) and adjusting the hours worked is the appropriate measure for employers to take. Two key obligations for employers under the subsidy are that for the period they are receiving the subsidy they will:

• Use their best endeavours to pay at least 80 per cent of each named employee’s ordinary wages or salary; and
• Pay at least the minimum wage rate to the employee

The wage subsidy is to assist employers in honouring their payroll, and MFEM acknowledges that the ability for businesses to top-up wages to contracted levels has gotten more difficult the longer these closures continue, however businesses are still encouraged to adjust the hours worked.

Employers who were not passing on the full amount of the wage subsidy have also been prevented from receiving any further subsidies until they have rectified this by back-paying those employees (as reported by Cook Islands News in July 2020).

These measures help to ensure that the wage subsidy is successful in achieving its goal of keeping people in employment – making it easier for both businesses and employees to ramp up activity when borders reopen in January.

Kia Manuia,

Garth Henderson

Financial Secretary

Stray and biting dogs

I would like to know who I contact in regards to stray and biting dogs?

The Police, I believe have the authority to destroy these animals. I have noticed a large increase of strays since the lockdown.

I know a lot of dogs have been abandoned by their owners when they leave the island and a lot are not registered or cared for which is both irresponsible and cruel.

I have had to padlock my dog’s registration onto his collar to prevent it from being stolen, which has happened twice.

These animals will hurt someone badly sooner or later and then there will be an outcry, kneejerk reaction seems to be the order of the day here.

What happened to the dog ranger? Why is the law not enforced?

Do we want an island full of half starved, aggressive dogs which will possibly bite somebody’s child or anyone who comes in to contact with them?

Not a good look and not a difficult problem to solve, so do it please.

Meitaki,

Nick Reeves

Online comments

Attacking dogs

That was the only thing I didn’t like about my holidays when I visited Rarotonga was the dogs roaming around the streets and on the beaches and especially at dusk and early evening if you were walking back from a night out or dinner they would attack you or just going for a stroll on the beach. It’s not good for tourism when the borders open again. – Mandy Mcintyre

Enforce the law if the dog is not registered, put it down. Biting dogs are plain dangerous. – Nicholas Reeves

Too many dogs and too many owners who don’t feed and look after them. –

Terry Rangi

Coming down the back road on a bike is scary! Dogs chasing you. – Anne Louise

The Government need to toughen up the law for dog owners, if you own a dog put a fence around your yard. – Debbie Pareanga.