City Hall staff to down their tools on various grievances
The City Hall building in Nairobi as pictured on April 19, 2021.
Operations in Nairobi County could to be paralysed after staff threatened to down their tools over failure by their employer to meet their various demands.
The more than 11,000 workers have threatened to disrupt services as they demand that acting Governor Ann Kananu and Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) Director-General Mohamed Badi address their grievances.
Top among staff complaints is perennial delay of salaries. The workers are also aggrieved by non-provision of medical cover by their employers.
They also protest at failure to promote county staff, non-harmonise staff benefits and non-remittance of statutory deductions.
Other grievances include non-payment of overtime and other allowances, non-payment of uniform allowances and other dues for retiring staff, failure to provide personal protective equipment and uniforms for deserving staff and failure to compensate security staff for working while supposed to be off-duty.
“Due to non-compliance and wilful failure on your part to address these grievance the union hereby invoke section 18 of the Employment Act, 2007, to parade members at City Hall beginning Wednesday October 13, 2021 at 8am,” reads in part a letter by the Kenya County Government Workers Union Nairobi Staff Branch Secretary Festus Ngari and Nairobi City Branch Secretary Benson Olianga.
Mr Ngari said they had informed both administrations of their intention to down their tools from next Wednesday.
He noted that the grievances are across the divide and both entities have shown no sign of addressing their demands.
Mr Ngari said the union branch officials met on September 28 and unanimously agreed to hold a parade and subsequently informed acting County Secretary Jairus Musumba.
“Workers are unhappy and we are fast losing our patience,” Mr Ngari yesterday, adding, they would go on strike on October 13, unless their demands are met.
“We’ve so far received no response from either City Hall or NMS,” Nairobi Branch Assistant Secretary Calvince Okello added.
On the medical scheme, he said workers have been exposed since July due to the inefficiency of the county executive to procure a medical insurance provider in time for seamless transition.
Mr Ngari said the exposure goes against Section 34(1) of the Employment Act, 2007 and a collective bargaining agreement signed by the workers and the county government in 2013.
City Hall staff have been depending on basic National Hospital Insurance Fund cover after that of the previous insurer, AAR, lapsed in June.
