Crisis looms in government as thousands retire

There is a looming crisis in the civil service as thousands of staff retire at the end of the month with no signs of lifting an existing moratorium on employment by the National Treasury.

A number of department heads have already notified their bosses, in both the national and county governments, of the existing gaps since most of those affected begun working from home after President Uhuru Kenyatta announced that those aged 58 and above should stay away from the office as they are more vulnerable to Covid-19.

The latest figures from the Public service Commission (PSC) show that about 50,000 staff have left the service as at December 2020. The data covers the past three years and includes county and national governments. Those who have left the disciplined services as well as county assemblies either through retirement or other natural causes are captured in the data.

Some 16,000 left in 2018, about a similar figure the following year and 17,000 exited last year, with no corresponding replacements in what human resources experts warn could trigger paralysis and dearth of key talent in government.

Read: Public Service to face staffing crisis in five years  

A memo by the chairman of the PSC, Stephen Kirogo, last November ruled out any possibility of extending the period of service of the affected staff to help deal with the effects of the pandemic.

“We have decided that, with effect from January 1, the commission shall not approve any extension of service for officers retiring from service upon attainment of the mandatory retirement age of 60 years, and 65 years for persons with disability. The retirement age for academic staff of public universities and research scientists shall be guided by the relevant legislation and guidelines,” the chairman said.

He said the commission had been inundated by numerous requests for extension of service, prompting him to issue the directive.

Mr Kirogo, who is himself aged over 60 years, in 2019 told the National Assembly Committee on Administration and National Security when being vetted: “Do not focus on my age, rather at the wealth of experience I bring on the table in this new role.”

The Saturday Nation has since learnt that Mr Kirogo’s circular did not go down well with some officials in the ministry, who have faulted him for not consulting. The officers argue that such ‘a blanket memo’ meant that some special talents who should be retained even after attaining the retirement age may be lost in the process.

Public debt

The fact that the government is running on empty, a fact made public by a person no less than the Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yattani himself this week - a situation made worse by the ballooning public debt and depressed economic growth - the government workforce can only grow thinner as the Treasury grapples with more pressing challenges, including stabilising the shilling.

The retirement also means that the pension bill will jump by 63.03 percent, or Sh10 billion.

 Treasury data as at the end of 2019 showed that public pension expenses stood at Sh27.8 billion in the four months to October compared to Sh17.06 billion a year earlier — making it the fifth largest Budget item after debt repayment, teachers’ pay and police salaries, The Business Daily reported.

The Treasury mandarins say they need Sh109 billion in the current fiscal year for pension payouts, rising to Sh153 billion in the year ending June 2022 when President Uhuru Kenyatta will leave office — reflecting a 20 per cent rise.

The Union of Kenya Civil Servants (UKCS) is sounding a warning that productivity is taking a beating as those left are overstretched with some handling critical functions not even allowed to proceed on leave.

“There is no succession management in place by the employer, it’s the worse in the regions. There are a lot young people in the service but not promoted to the level they can take over from those leaving,” UKCS deputy secretary general Jerry ole Kina said.

He said some vacant positions had been advertised, but months later, they had not been filled up.

“I’m sure you know that Job groups A to C have since been scrapped, they say they will outsource the services. Some departments in the Agriculture ministry are affected the most. From our data, even those dying are not being replaced,” Mr Ole Kina said.

Public Service Cabinet Secretary Margaret Kobia, however, said there was no cause for alarm as the government was addressing the situation.

“Those are the numbers that have retired in the last three years and not significant to affect service. A close to similar number has joined the service. Note it is civil service in national and county governments and disciplined forces.

Lean staff

“The pipeline always has staff who take over from retiring officers, therefore service delivery has not been affected. With the digitisation of services, the public service is moving towards a lean and effective staff responding to factors influenced by the effects of Covid-19 and the need for innovation and reforms,” she said.

The minister added that with digitisation and working remotely, going forward, the government may not need to have everyone working from the office even as she maintained that there was still provision to retain rare talents who are 60 years and above.

In 2019, the minister announced that about 20 per cent of the workforce will retire in about two years, which begins this January.

“Most of the technical people in job group S are retiring. We are working on promoting those below them. A deputy director should be able to do the job of a retiring director,” she said then.

But even as Prof Kobia sought to assure the country that systems were in place to replace those leaving, a number of interns have complained that they were not being absorbed into the service even after completing their apprenticeship.

In 2019, the government recruited 3,600 graduates in a plan PSC said would help address the problem of an aging workforce when they are finally observed after one year. Most of them now say they are yet to see the confirmation letters.

To address what he calls appointment of the old to positions in government at the expense of the youth, Starehe MP Charles Njagua has sponsored a Bill in the National Assembly to review the retirement age downwards.

“Noting the mandatory retirement age for public servants is set at 60 years, this House urges the government to review mandatory retirement age in public service from current 60 to 50 years," he says.

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