Wrangling on placement and payment of ex-NHIF employees

A section of the SHA building located at Upper Hill in Nairobi, March 5, 2025. [Edward Kiplimo, Standard]

A section of former employees of the defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) is yet to be placed in respective institutions and enrolled in the payroll. 

The fate of the more than 800 employees remains in the balance.

The employees were deployed to respective ministries by the Public Service Commission (PSC), following the establishment of the Social Health Authority (SHA).

In an interview with The Standard, some of the frustrated employees said they are not being paid.

Some of the employees have not received their salaries since November last year.

Among those highly affected were senior managers and branch managers who were serving under NHIF across the 47 counties.

According to multiple sources, various ministries have managed to onboard and pay salaries for May and June.

Pay for other employees remains unknown. The employees have also not been added to the payroll.

“Still, we are on no salary. There are also no payrolls,” added the source, yet to receive a placement letter, nor placed on payroll.

In despair, the majority of employees are opting to resign.

“So wanting is the situation that people are resigning. There is no clarity on posting, and those posted have no salaries. Yet, nobody is communicating at all,” said an EX NHIF employee.

Deputy directors and line managers of the defunct NHIF have not received their pay since October last year.

Nevertheless, branch managers and senior employees have pending pay for January and March, respectively.

Delayed issuance of salaries and placement of employees on payrolls is against PSC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Paul Famba.

In a letter dated June 14, 2026, the PSC CEO is urging ministries and departments to ensure everyone is onboarded and on payroll by July 1, 2026.

The letter was addressed to all Principal Secretaries (PSs) and authorised offices.

According to the letter, the commission had directed all deployed officers to be issued with appointment letters, appropriately placed in their respective institutions and enrolled on the payroll.

Also, a status report on the onboarding process was to be submitted to the commission by May 24, 2026.

However, the PSC CEO acknowledged that some ministries have not finalised the process.

“Accordingly, you are hereby asked to ensure that the deployed officers are fully onboarded on or before June 30, 2026, including issuance of appointment letters, placement in appropriate positions and inclusion in the payroll,” reads a section of the PSC CEO to PSs.

In case of budgetary constraints, the commission directed ministries to contact the National Treasury.

“Where a Ministry State Departments and Agencies (MDA) is experiencing budgetary constraints that may hinder the onboarding process, the accounting officer should engage the National Treasury for the necessary support to ensure compliance with the directive,” added the letter.

Further, the commission said the matter should be acted on with urgency.

“You are therefore required to take the necessary action as a matter of urgency and submit a comprehensive status report to the commission by July 1, 2026,” said the commissioner.

The ex-NHIF employees have been deployed to their respective government departments.

Among the departments include Ministry of Gender, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), the Ministry of Education, Immigration, Culture, the Attorney General, the National Treasury, among other government departments.

But the majority of employees, according to multiple sources, are yet to be deployed.

Multiple wrangling on ex-NHIF employees has continued in courts after NHIF was repealed by SHA in November 2024.

Court cases have also been ongoing on the issue of employees.

Among the issues that were in court were the absorption of all the employees as per SHA transition plans and the employment process at the SHA establishment.

Also, employees contested the issue of pay.

Initially, immediately after NHIF was repealed by SHA on November 24, all NHIF employees were deployed to SHA.

According to employment structures at SHA, the staff were to undergo a suitability assessment.

The second option for the employees was to take an early retirement package.

The third option was to have them absorbed into the public sector.

To guarantee smooth operation at SHA, PSC extended the stay of the staff until SHA was fully established.

Currently, SHA is fully established, including the deployment of 47 county branch managers.

Last year, the Employment and Labour Relations Court ordered that all staff at defunct NHIF who will not be absorbed by SHA and who will opt for deployment in the wider public service will retain their prevailing NHIF last salary.

This was to be effected until they exit the public service through normal retirement, resignation or any other lawful means.

SHA is the vehicle for the actualisation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

This is aimed at ensuring all Kenyans access quality healthcare, regardless of their financial muscles.

UHC is also aimed at reducing out-of-pocket expenditure in search of healthcare.