Kenya trade unions reject state’s new pay negotiation terms
Photo/Nation
Ms Sarah Serem (left), Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) chairperson and Mr David Okuta (right), the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) secretary-general. Trade unions have rejected new pay negotiation guidelines that exclude them from talking directly with SRC that sets the salaries of all government employees.
Trade unions have rejected new pay negotiation guidelines that exclude them from talking directly to the agency that sets the salaries of all government employees.
The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) released the new rules on pay negotiations last week that shield it from talking directly to representatives of unionisable state employees – effectively changing the way that trade unions have traditionally dealt with employers.
The SRC said trade unions will instead submit their proposals to the relevant government departments for onward transmission to the agency.
“The commission will not talk to the unions but will only accept proposals from their employers who must justify their request for reviews,” said Sarah Serem, the chairperson of the commission while releasing the guidelines in Nairobi.
She said that the management of government departments and state corporations with unionisable staff will be required to seek the commission’s advice before initiating any collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the unions to ensure sustainability of such deals.
The directive creates a new dispensation in which the workers will deal with officers who have no authority to make binding decisions while the commission that is vested with the powers to do so remains out of reach.
Key unions representing civil servants on Tuesday dismissed the guidelines as running against the spirit of the Constitution which grants workers the right to collective bargaining as well as picketing.
“In attempting to lock us out of its premises, the commission is simply going against the Constitution,” said David Okuta, secretary-general of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut).
Mr Okuta said the commission’s proposals were in breach of Section 41 of the Constitution which deals with labour relations.
The section gives every person the right to fair labour practices including just remuneration, reasonable working conditions, liberty to join a trade union and to participate in a strike.
The Universities’ Academic Staff Union (Uasu) questioned the mandate of the commission in the conduct of negotiations between employers and their workers.
“Our initial understanding was that the commission will negotiate with us but this appears not to be the case because they are bent on dictating terms from behind closed boardroom doors,” said Muga K’Olale, the Uasu secretary-general.
Dr K’Olale said that a number of trade unions suspended industrial action late last year after the Cabinet promised to forward their demands to the newly-created commission for consideration.
“We dropped our agitation for better terms on the understanding that the commission would deal with our issues but that has not happened. We may soon be forced to resume direct negotiations with our employers,” he said.
Collective Bargaining Agreements are an important mechanism that workers use to negotiate wages with employers and to settle disputes through dialogue rather than strikes.
The Industrial Court has jurisdiction to arbitrate and register CBAs negotiated between employers’ and workers’ representatives to improve terms and conditions of employment and it is not clear how the salaries commission will fit in this arrangement.
Kenya has in the last six months been hit by a wave of labour unrests mainly involving unionisable government officers including lecturers, teachers, doctors and nurses.
The Cabinet has regularly responded to the strikes with an appeal for a return to work pending the establishment of the salaries commission.
Despite the protests from Knut and Uasu, the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) and some legal experts have backed the commissions proposals.
Isaiah Kubai, a representative of Cotu in the salaries commission, said the new arrangement would not affect talks between workers and employers.
“Nobody has been robbed of their power to negotiate. We shall have offers and counter offers until a middle ground is reached,” he said.
Joash Dache, the secretary of the Kenya Law Reform Commission, said the Constitution mandates the commission to have a final say on what terms the government will deal with its workers.
“The role of the commission is clear as per the Constitution and that makes its word final in terms of salary reviews,” he said.
The commission is established under Article 230 of the Constitution and has powers to set and regularly review salaries and benefits of all state officers.
It is also mandated to advise national and county governments on the remuneration and benefits of all other public officers while keeping an eye on the total public compensation bill.
This essentially means that CBAs will not be binding especially in parastatals where salaries will be reviewed based on the financial soundness of the state corporations, analysts said.
“If you are losing money we don’t expect you to ask for a review,” said Mr Dache.
This means that poorly performing State corporations are likely to bear the brunt of the proposed changes.
Ms Serem said the new guidelines are meant to harmonise remuneration of public officers across the board to ensure fairness while maintaining a realistic wage bill.
Salary reviews will be done every four years, according the commission’s guidelines and will be based on the prevailing economic situation and dynamics of the labour market.
“Right now there is no sober criteria of remuneration and we want to bring in benchmarks to determine packages,” she said.
Uasu is, however, opposed to the four-year salary review which is two times longer than the period covered by CBAs under the current arrangement.
“Something must be provided at least every year to cushion workers from the ever rising cost of living. We must not wait for our people to suffer for four years,” Dr K’Olale said.
A taskforce force that the government formed nine years ago recommended that salary reviews be done every two years.
The commission also proposes to have fixed periods during which consultants working for the government will enjoy preferential terms.
