The country’s health sector is headed for yet another crisis after medics threatened to call a nationwide strike over their allowances.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union is accusing the Salaries and Remuneration Commission of scrapping part of the allowances, which were originally contained in their collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
The medics have warned of dire consequences in the health sector, terming the new rules as retrogressive and unconstitutional.
The move come barely two weeks after the union, the Council of Governors (CoG) and the national government entered into a pact to suspend the nationwide strike called by the medics.
The medics were quick to warn that they were ready to down their tools due to the new measures introduced by the SRC.
According to KPMDU secretary general Dr Davji Bhimji, they would oppose any attempts to abolish the earnings as they were lawful.
Addressing the press in Lake Naivasha Resort, Bhimji, who was flanked by fellow members, said that the earnings were part of their CBA between them and their employers.
Bhimji defended the allowances targeted by SRC, saying that they were incentives and meant to compensate the medics, adding that it was part of their terms of employment.
“Any attempt to scrap these allowances will injure the motivation and productivity of the entire workforce and erode gains made in the health sector,” he said.
On his part, the union chairman Dr Abidan Mwachi alleged that the move by SRC would see their salaries slashed by more than 50 per cent.
While condemning the new directive, he said that doctors across the country were ready to down their tools as they could not tolerate more harassment from the commission.
“Doctors work under very harsh conditions and it’s our right to get these allowances and we shall not sit back as SRC slashes them down,” he said.
Dr Mwachi further said that despite coming to terms with CoG and the Ministry of Health, the medics were ready to call for industrial action from their members.
He attributed the high cases of deaths and medical negligence in the country to failure by the government to employ more medics.
“Despite having a high number of graduate doctors, the government has failed to address the current shortage, and hence the current crisis in our health centres,” he said.
