- Lawmakers will conduct an assessment of the impact of the unprocedural salary review on the affected teachers.
- Senators will also seek to establish if measures have been taken to resolve this crisis.
Image: FILE
Senators have commenced a probe into allegations of unprocedural reduction of salaries of Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) teachers in Kirinyaga County.
The lawmakers will be seeking to establish circumstances that led to the suspension of March and April 2023 salaries and the eventual manual payment of a fraction of the same in May 2023.
Kirinyaga Senator James Kamau Murango said an assessment of the impact of the unprocedural salary review on the affected teachers, their families, and their financial responsibilities and obligations should be conducted.
The Standing Committee on Labour and Social Welfare will conduct the probe.
Murango wants the county to state whether orders of the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi, under Petition No. E026 of 2023, regarding the inter-parties hearing to resolve the disputed recommendations of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), was undertaken, stating the date and the resolutions, if any.
“Outline measures taken by the relevant Ministry to resolve this crisis and restore normalcy in ECDE learning institutions countrywide,” he added.
Under Kenyan labour laws, even in situations where a company is facing financial problems, an employee's pay cannot be reduced without consent or discussions between the employee and the employer.
Both the employer and the employee must still discuss and agree.
An employment contract cannot be unilaterally varied by one party without the consent of the other.
In the current economic environment, employees are likely to agree to a reduction in salary if this is seen as an alternative to being made redundant or being under the threat of redundancy.
An employer has the option of terminating a contract of employment by giving contractual notice and then offering a new contract on a reduced salary.