Trade unionism is an effective development partner

 

Let me outline four basic functions of a trade union. First is the militant function, which includes protecting the worker's interests; hike in wages, providing more benefits and job security. This is done through collective bargaining and direct action such as a strike. Second is the fraternal function.

This includes providing financial and non-financial assistance to workers, extension of medical facilities during sickness and causalities, provision of education, recreational and housing facilities.

Third is the social function, which includes discharging social responsibilities through various sections of society and finally is the political function. This function includes affiliating a union to a political party, helping the political party in enrolling members, seeking the help of political parties during the strikes and lock-outs etc.

One way an employer can create more employment is when there is business expansion. Expansion may be a result of good earnings and ploughing back profits. Good earnings may be a result of higher productivity. Workers perform better if they are retrained. This is when the fraternal function comes in.

Maybe you know the saying, "When you point one finger, there are three fingers pointing back at you." We are told Jesus had a version of this wisdom when he said, "Don't focus on the speck in your brother's eye while ignoring the log in your own eye." The wisdom here is that when some accusations fly, we all need to hear the voice of reason that says, "Look in the mirror. You might just be talking about yourself." Many trade unions have not played their fraternal functions well.

Job creation

So how could trade unions effectively participate in employment creation that the union leaders demanded from the government and employers in their speeches on Labour Day? Every union member remits monthly contributions to the union. My own University Academic Staff Union (UASU) gets 2 percent from every member's salary on monthly basis. My chapter of JKUAT for example collects about Sh1.8 million monthly whereas Kenyatta University collects about Sh2.2 million.

With over 20 public universities in Kenya and at an average of Sh2 million UASU could very easily be collecting Sh40 million per month. UASU can use part of this money to retool lecturers to improve their delivery and churn out better graduates who can improve industry productivity and eventually lead to more employment arising from an expanded industry. The message is that if trade unions invested in their fraternity function well, then ours would be a better country to live in.

When COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli openly supported Sakaja for the forthcoming Senators seat in Nairobi he may have been playing the political function. Of course he clarified in his speech that a COTU political stand can only be taken with a resolution from the governing council of the union.

President Kenyatta and his deputy touched on the farmer in their speeches. When I was chairman Kenya Investment Authority, we did a survey on the then collapsed Rivatex. One reason was the demotivated farmer who was being paid only for the fibre in the cotton at the ginnery but not the seed. The ginner then either sold the seed to oil processors or sold it back to the farmer for planting.

With the cotton farmer not well represented by a union, negotiation for better prices that take into consideration the seed in the cotton would not be. A USA member on our survey team informed us that the USA cotton farmer was competitive because pricing for his cotton takes into consideration both the seed and the fibre.

There were complaints about the employers, the courts and the SRC in matters trade unionism. We have had instances where the SRC has acted unilaterally and done a job that could be detrimental to development. I covered one such instance in this column. Courts should be the very last resort in matters trade unionism and when they come in, it would pay if they did not just look at the letter of the law but the spirit too. The message I am trying to put across is that properly managed and supported, trade unions can be an effective development partner.

Prof Bwisa teaches Entrepreneurship at JKUAT