It was May 31, I thought a few days too late.
I went to Seguro Social on Calle 17, figuring that the long lines had been last week, and I would have to pay a small fine for missing the month’s payment deadline. I left my office about 2 p.m., took the bus down to Plaza Cinco de Mayo, and walked through the Avenida Central pedestrian mall and then around the corner the Seguro.
(No, nobody tried to rob me or kill me on Central. Has somebody told you that I was extremely lucky? I say that the person who told you that has insulted not only the cops who are always present there, but also the many small merchants of this bastion of popular capitalism, and also your intelligence.)
When I walked through the door, I realized that I was mistaken about the day. This Monday, not the previous Friday, was the deadline.
There would be no fine to pay. There would, however, be a line in which to wait.
As in, out the back of the room and up a stairwell --- up to the fifth floor.
Lucky for me, I was in my modified gringo informal grubbies. No long business suit, no long-sleeved shirt and tie for my wait on the sweltering stairs.
Modified? Well, my standard shorts and chancletas were out. You have to wear long pants and real shoes if you are male, and women can’t wear shorts of tops that show off their abdomens. So I wore my only clean pair of blue jeans, shoes and socks and a t-shirt that advises “When All Else Fails --- lower your standards.”
Big business was not well represented in this line. To the extent that it was, they sent messengers. This was Panamanian small business en masse, lots of little shops, the law firm or customs courier service here or there, and many entrepreneurs paying Seguro for but one employee, themselves.
Have you seen how badly Panamanians can behave in an airport line? Well, those are a different class of Panamanians. The people in this line were uniformly courteous. Although a few people talked about how the line might be speeded up, nobody really complained.
It took a half-hour to get me back down off the hot stairwell and into the air-conditioned office. Then it was a little more than another half-hour to get my moment before the cashier. Noticing that I was from The Panama News, she practiced her English on me.
But meanwhile, many people did not have to stand in line at all. Those paying by check, with the proper paperwork arranged in advance, can now deposit their payments in automated boxes at this or one of several other Seguro Social offices.
But the many micro-enterprises without checking accounts have to pay at the teller, in cash, like I did.
In that case, the way to avoid the long lines is to avoid procrastinating until the last day. That, or come later and pay the late fee.
Also in this section:
Business & Economy Briefs
Cutting construction costs the common but illegal way
What happens if you wait until the last day to pay Seguro
Panama Canal complies with ISPS
New readership record for The Panama News
