'General workers strike unstoppable,' Trade Union Congress of Kenya (TUC-Ke) Secretary General Sossion says

Kenyans could, beginning today, grapple with disruption or even shutdown of the public service system after trade unions instructed Government workers to boycott work until the new but controversial rates set by National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) are suspended.

The Trade Union Congress of Kenya (TUC-Ke), an umbrella body for unions representing teachers, civil servants, lecturers and other workers, yesterday termed the new deductions as "robbery" and asked all members of its affiliate unions to come out and stop the "raid".

Some 700,000 State workers are affiliated to the union and should they heed the call, the Government may be confronted with one of the largest nationwide strikes.

"We are now directing all the workers to boycott work until the new rates are suspended and fresh talks initiated to review the deductions," said TUC-Ke Secretary General Wilson Sossion, who is also the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General.

?

Top from Left: Trade Unions Congress of Kenya officials Tom Odege (Chairman), Wilson Sossion (Secretary General) and his deputy Charles Mukhwaya address the Press in Nairobi yesterday. Above: Dock Workers Union members sing in solidarity outside the main entrance to the port of Mombasa, where they staged a demonstration yesterday. (PHOTO: DAVID NJAAGA AND GIDEON MAUNDU)

Mr Sossion said the decision to boycott work was arrived at after TUC-Ke's National Executive Council meeting yesterday morning.

Accompanied by national officials of Union of Kenya Civil Servants, Kenya Universities Staff Union, University Academic Staff Union and the Dock Workers Union (DWU), Sossion said the general strike was now "unstoppable".

The taste of bitter experience to come was felt in Mombasa when 5,000 dock workers started their strike, crippling the country's main international ocean's gateway.

Also present were representatives of KNUT and Kenya Union of Employees of Polytechnic Colleges.

Sossion warned the Government against deploying police to scuttle the strike.

"As we speak, we are told the General Service Unit wing of the police has been deployed to Kenya Ports Authority to scare our members. They will not succeed," he said.

DWU Secretary General Simon Sang said no dock worker will report to work.

"Even if they send police to our offices, we shall not be moved," said Sang.

Civil Servants Union Secretary General Tom Odege asked workers not to report to work.

"We are instructing all workers to stay home until the Government sets aside the controversial rates," said Odege.

At the centre of the dispute are the new NHIF rates that will see those earning a gross monthly salary of Sh5,999 and below pay Sh150 monthly while those earning a monthly salary of Sh100,000 and above contribute Sh1,700.

Sossion said workers would not contribute Sh26 billion annually to a scheme whose benefits they do not understand.

Quality services

"There was no commitment that the existing health facilities would be revamped and qualified personnel to provide commensurate and quality services," explained Sossion.

But what angered the unions most was the Government's move to backtrack on a deal they had reached during the Monday meeting under the arbitration of the Ministry of Labour.

"We agreed that they will suspend the gazette notice that effected the new rates. We also agreed to call off the strike and also withdraw the court case. But when we returned to seal the deal the following day, the language changed," said Sossion.

Education Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi was also present at the Monday and Tuesday meetings.

Acting Labour Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo, however, accused unions of dishonesty.

"We had a good and genuine talk but we never reached an agreement. But there is still time for dialogue," she said.

Sossion said the level of dishonesty demonstrated by the Government pushed workers to strike.

"Now we are saying that there shall be no worker in their stations until they suspend the new rates, and also return the monies they have deducted from workers," he said.

He said the old rates must be reinstated until proper talks are initiated and agreements reached.

A memorandum submitted by TUC-Ke at the consultative meetings listed a number of objections the union wanted addressed before implementation of the new rates.

The document explains that unions want the deductions based on gross pay, not basic pay.

It also argued there was no justification of banding gross income and allocating proposed levies on respective bands. "There are many workers with superior medical schemes. But there is no provision that allows them to be exempted. All we see is a skewed deduction formula that is lenient to high earners and oppressive to low income earners," Sossion said.

He said the new deductions were too high and drastic, adding that they were not commensurate with income reviews that workers enjoy.

Also contested by unions is what they called "arbitrary increase" of the rates without consultations.

Stalled reforms

"Teachers alone contribute almost 90 per cent of NHIF collections and it is immoral to effect new rates without proper consultation and consensus with teachers' unions," said Sossion.

Lack of Government's contribution to the social medical scheme and stalled reforms at the NHIF were also cited as reasons the workers were 'infuriated.'

"Since it is a universal healthcare, there was need to make a provision for the Government or employers to contribute. This is not the case and we say it is unacceptable," Sossion said.