The Dock Workers Union has signed a petition to accept a 12 per cent salary increment as advised by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.
Early this year, the workers' union and KPA signed a salary increment Collective Bargaining Agreement of 10 per cent spread over two years, beginning 2021 to 2022.
This was to be followed by negotiations for the 2023 CBA.
However, SRC had in May given an advisory for a 12 per cent salary increment to be spread over four years, that is 2020 to 2023.
Led by the Chief Shop Steward Justine Mranja Angore, the members decided to push for it following delays in implementing the CBA, which has been occasioned by a push and pull by the union, KPA and SRC.
Speaking outside the Mombasa port on Tuesday after presenting their petition to the DWU national chairperson that was addressed to KPA managing director, they want the 12 per cent salary increment to be implemented immediately.
The petition was signed by about 1,000 port workers with more signatures expected within the week.
According to Angore, the over 5,000 port workers who have agreed to sign the petition are only a section of port workers stationed in Mombasa as they await for more names and signatures from other regions in Lamu, Nairobi and Kisumu.
“Following the stalemate on the 2020/2023 CBA, we members hereby take charge and make decision as is provided in our DWU constitution article 7, which states that a member has a right to participate in union activities, as stipulated in CBA negotiations either directly or indirectly,”
“We do hereby put this petition to cease fire, as such therefore, we have agreed in one voice that we take the 12 per cent as guided by SRC without further delay,” he said.
“We have waited for a salary increment for too long, enough is enough, we want as quick as possible what rightfully belongs to us. The MD should sign the agreement as quickly as possible, so that we get paid.”
DWU national chairperson Mohammed Mwasera commended the workers for their move while calling for unity within the union as he promised to personally take the petition to the MD.
“I want to thank you for the move you have taken in coming up with the petition and not to disrupt work or people. Ours is to bring industrial harmony, the employer has not refused to pay us, it's just that the process has taken too long,” Mwasera said.
In early November, the union’s general secretary Simon Sang issued a seven day strike notice to push for the full implementation of the 2021/2022 CBA.
However, some union members led by the Port Workers Welfare and Performance Group opposed it, appealing to union members to ignore the notice, which they warned may lead to their sacking.
The group has been opposed to Sang’s ways of dealing with port issues.
The strike notice came barely a month after Parliament approved recommendations by the National Assembly committee on Labour and Social Welfare led by Mwea MP Kibinga Wachira, that ordered SRC to implement the 2020/2021 CBA agreement.
-Edited by SKanyara
