THE Social Security System announced on Friday the 20-year imprisonment of a catering service owner for unpaid SSS contributions.
Assistant Vice President for Operations Legal Department Renato Cuisia said the Quezon City Regional Trial Court found Henry Marcos, owner of Henry Marcos Catering Services, guilty beyond
reasonable doubt of violation of Republic Act 8282 or the Social Security Act of 1997.
Marcos was sentenced to a jail term of four years and two months to 20 years for non-payment of P1,358,573.24 in civil liabilities representing unpaid contributions of his 11 employees, including
penalties as of Dec. 16, 2013.
In accordance with provisions under the Social Security Law, a 3- percent penalty was imposed every month on the delinquency until fully paid, SSS said.
“We would like to remind employers that no matter how small or big their business is, they are required by law to register with SSS and report their employees. The law did not make any distinction as to how many employees a company should have before reporting it to SSS,” Cuisia said.
“As much as possible, we want to avoid the tedious process of litigation and just settle the controversy outside the courts for speedy resolution for the benefit of the company’s workers. However, since Marcos did not cooperate, we do not have other recourse but to file a case in court,” he added.