Mombasa Port workers go on strike over pay hitch

 KPA Head of Corporate Affairs Bernard Osero. He says there are employees whose payslips read less the amount worked for, while others have more. (PHOTO: COURTESY)

Operations at the Mombasa Port Authority were paralysed yesterday after more than 5,000 employees downed their tools over a new time management biometric system they say has caused salary irregularities.

Yesterday, the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) admitted the system is facing “teething problems” and that it is being resolved.

“We are not surprised with the issues raised by employees because any given system would experience some teething problems. There are employees whose payslips read less the amount worked for, while others have more,” said KPA Head of Corporate Affairs Bernard Osero.

Mr Osero said the employees were also protesting a two-day delay of their salaries but added that KPA is doing everything to solve the problem. Yesterday, hundreds of trucks making their way into or out of the port were stuck at the gates, causing massive snarl ups while employees from other Government agencies like the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) were denied entry.

“The strike began at around 7a.m. as a sit-down but escalated because of the poor manner the management handled the issue. Right now no goods are going in or out,” said one of the employees who was protesting outside gate number one.

Dock Workers Union Secretary General Simon Sang said the workers were not opposed to the new biometric time management system but are demanding problems that have caused anomalies in their pay resolved.

“Yes, the employees are protesting against the new time management system but we have agreed with the management to suspend it for three months. This (system) has caused problems in the payroll in the sense that some employees are paid less what they are supposed to earn while others are paid a lot,” said Sang on phone.

Osero, however, said the management and the union officials were still holding talks and that nothing had been agreed on. The biometric system that replaces the old manual time cards, and the port’s management believes it will increase the employees’ management and time keeping.

The system that went live on June 1 this year is linked to the “Wajibika platform” that went live in July 2013. Wajibika is a scorecard tool that places collective responsibility onto employees to improve performance and fulfill potential.