- High Court has given parties two more weeks to engage in reconciliatory talks
- The court also directed the reconciliation committee to resolve the grievances in the doctors strike notice
Image: HESBORN ETYANG
State House officials will today meet with doctors and other stakeholders in the health sector to find a lasting solution to the perennial strikes by the medics.
The revelation was made in court yesterday when a case in which Kenyatta National Hospital sued the doctors union, demanding they call off their strike that started last week.
Justice Byram Ongaya of the Employment and Labour Relations court in Nairobi last week directed parties to negotiate and agree on minimum essential services to be maintained during the doctors industrial strike so that patients do not suffer.
The court also directed the reconciliation committee to resolve the grievances in the doctors strike notice.
Last week's talks made little progress.
When the parties returned to court on Wednesday, Kenyatta National Hospital informed the court that not all parties attended the meeting held on Tuesday and that another round of talks was set for Thursday.
State counsel Oscar Eredi said Head of Public Service Felix Koskei had invited all the parties in the talks for a meeting at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre to resolve all outstanding issues that shall not have been agreed on during the Thursday meeting with the reconciliation committee.
The meeting of the reconciliation committee involves cabinet secretaries for Health, Labour and the National Treasury together with the Public Service Commission, Salaries and Remuneration Commission, the doctors Union KMPDU, all county governments and national referral hospitals.
"The Head of Public Service has invited all parties and scheduled the meeting on Thursday at 4.45pm at the KICC to discuss all issues in the doctors strike notice. We are asking for more time to engage," Eredi told the court.
He said Koskei in his invitation has promised to have all perennial disputes in the health sector discussed with a view to finding a lasting solution.
According to the state counsel, the government has honoured the doctors previous CBA and that talks are ongoing on the next CBA for 2021 through to 2025.
"The state has already given its counter-proposals and parties are engaging," Eredi said.
Lawyer Edgar Washika who was representing the doctor's union said the Tuesday meeting was not fully constituted as the court had ordered.
He said doctors were ready to attend the meeting convened by the Head of Public Service.
"We shall attend both meeting for tomorrow," he said.
Justice Ongaya directed the matter be mentioned on April 3 for a report on the progress of the talks.
The doctors are demanding that the government immediately posts medical interns and clears the basic salary arrears for doctors as per the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement.
“Those are the bare minimums. Those are things that have to be implemented,” Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union secretary general Davji Atellah said last week.
The union wants the posting of interns done immediately and the ministry to ensure they are well compensated.
The ministry had in previous responses to the doctors said the posting and payment of interns would require Sh4.9 billion, funds that Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha says her ministry doesn't have.