- They gave a six-day strike notice, saying they had endured enough suffering.
- County government failed to comment on the impending strike.
Meru health workers have accused Governor Kiraitu Murungi's administration of high-handedness in handling promotions and provision of personal protective equipment.
They gave a six-day strike notice, saying they had endured enough suffering waiting for their grievances to be handled in an amicable way before considering industrial action.
The workers' secretary general Nesbit Mugendi said different cadres had struggled to bear with job stagnation despite their demands to be promoted since 2018.
“We served the strike notice letter to county secretary Rufus Miriti, Health executive and County Public Service Board on July 6, giving them a room for 21 days which lapse on July 27,” Mugendi said on Tuesday.
Mugendi said the last promotion to health workers was done during former Governor Peter Munya’s reign (now CS Agriculture) in 2017.
Governor Kiraitu and Miriti did not reply to text messages seeking his comment on the situation.
Mutuma said, “ I don’t want to comment on the issues right now until we have a meeting with them that will happen today.”
Denis Mugambi, chairman KMPDU in Upper Eastern, said Isiolo, Tharaka Nithi and Embu have promoted their health workers but not Meru.
“Doctors are stagnated at Job Group M for 11 years. We have lost one doctor still waiting for promotion,” he said.
Mugendi said colleagues were getting infected with Covid-19 creating a crisis.
“We need enough and correct PPE, masks and gowns. Right now, we have workers who are in isolation because they have already contracted coronavirus. We have surgical masks instead of KN95 masks,” he said.
The workers said they sought intervention from Meru MCAs through a petition, which the assembly approved the budget in the last financial year 2019-20.
Mugendi wondered where the money was spent.
“We shall now seek justice through industrial action till promotion issues are sorted. If you do not promote a worker, you have not motivated them. Human resources issues are always ignored by the Kiraitu administration," he said.
The secretary general said over 800 nurses are due for promotion and over 100 doctors.
"Consultant doctors are at Job Group M. Those working in dialysis unit have never been promoted. Clinical officers never been promoted. How do you expect good services during the Covid-19 pandemic?” he said.
He said their scheme of service say they are supposed to be promoted upon completion of three years. But despite engagement with the executive and assembly the matter has never been addressed.
He said they have written over 17 letters to the Meru government but they only get flimsy excuses.
“So, let patients be prepared that no work shall be done in the whole county at end of this week. By not promoting us they are wishing us to retire and die,” he said.
Mugendi said most Meru health workers were living in deplorable conditions because they cannot borrow from banks due to poor pay.
Edited by Henry Makori