For the month of December the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is supporting the government of Sierra Leone to ensure that those workers at the Ebola Treatment Units receive hazard pay quickly and efficiently. Doctors, nurses, first responders, and burial teams are among the many workers deployed on the front lines in the fight to rid ebola from the country.

Hazard pay, calculated as a percentage of salary, acknowledges the special conditions of workers in Ebola units. UNDP’s payment expertise is vital to ensure that these workers are paid on time, in full, and in a way that allows them to access their pay easily.

There is little financial infrastructure in Sierra Leone which operates largely as a cash economy. While there are formal banking services available around the country, many still have to travel long distances to access them. Ebola has also affected other economic activities, reducing possible incomes from other sources. In this context making sure ebola workers are paid promptly and accurately is both difficult and crucially important to eradicate the disease.