•Their demand to have full salary reinstated hit a snag when the company’s management insisted that the production was still low, making it impossible.
•Chemelil managing director Gabriel Nyangweso said despite agreeing with workers on the mode of payments they downed their tools.
Image: MAURICE ALAL
Workers at Chemelil Sugar Company have downed their tools over salary arrears.
The workers who are on the second day of strike to push for payments said the arrears date back to three years.
They said the arrears stand at more than Sh800 million.
Chemelil branch secretary, Kenya Union of Sugarcane Plantation workers, Jack Osida said the workers are unable to pay school fees and feed their families.
Osida called on the government to ensure all their dues are cleared.
Their demand to have full salary reinstated hit a snag when the company’s management insisted that the production was still low, making it impossible.
On Wednesday, some transporters and cane cutters termed “friendly” to the management blocked the company’s entrance and weighbridge in support of the company.
Transporters, farmers and cane cutters said the strike was affecting the company’s operations.
They said mature sugarcane was being damaged when the factory is not operational.
Rapid Deployment Unit officers from Songhor intervened and calmed the tension.
However, workers claimed that some senior company officers had dished out money to transporters and cane cutters to side with the management.
“The alleged riot was simply to scuttle our peaceful protests to push for payments. Our members' union refrained from any form of violence,” a worker said.
Workers who spoke on condition of anonymity said they have not been earning for the last three years.
They said they are being threatened with sacking for demanding salary arrears.
During a meeting between the union officials and management on Wednesday, workers stood firm that they will return to work when their dues are not paid.
The management requested them to return to work as they work on payments.
Muhoroni subcounty deputy county commissioner Benedict Munyeki led the subcounty security and Agriculture ministry representative in attending the meeting.
Chemelil managing director Gabriel Nyangweso said despite agreeing with workers on the mode of payments they downed their tools.
“We have agreed to pay them 40 per cent because our operation is still low,” Nyangweso said.
He said the workers wanted reinstatement of full salary.
“We have told them that the company cannot afford it since the machine is only 30 per cent operational,” Nyangweso said.
“If we pay them full salary then it means farmers and transporters will not be paid making our operations fully collapse.”
The MD denied claims transporters, cane cutters and farmers were hired to side with the management.
He said the stakeholders were concerned should the company halt operations.
“People suffered when we closed down operations in 2019, nobody was paid to side with us. They are simply raising their concern,” he said.
Two years ago, Nyangweso said for the last six years, they have experienced declining sugarcane supply, depressing ex-factory sugar price and high cost of production.
He attributed unpaid salaries to liquidity challenges, machine inefficiency and the high cost of production.
He said Chemelil owed staff a total of Sh844 million- Sh438 million for net salary arrears, and Sh152 million for retirement benefits and terminal dues for 175 former employees as of July 31, 2019.
A total of Sh253.9 million out of the Sh844 million is for unremitted statutory and other deductions.
The amount of outstanding statutory and other deductions grew by Sh20 million to Sh273 million by September, 2019.
The company has 600 permanent employees and 469 contracted workers.
On March 2019, the company suspended milling operations after farmers withdrew supply of cane citing accumulated arrears.
It resumed operations on February 27, last year.
Salary arrears prompted the Parliamentary Committee on Labour and Social Welfare to visit Chemelil, Muhoroni and Sony Sugar Company to establish the true status and seek a remedy in August 2019.
The committee, chaired by Bura MP Ali Wario, noted the suffering workers are undergoing and pledged to push for their payment.
The committee members included Onyango Koyoo, Tom Odege, Ronald Tonui, David Sangok, Michael Muchira, and Janet Nangabo.
Tonui, who led the committee, said the objective was to find out the issue of nonpayment of salaries to employees of various sugar companies.
“We will make sure the arrears are paid,” Sangok said.
Koyoo appealed to the government to offset workers' dues and also pump in money to revitalise the company before it is privatised.
“We are not opposed to privatisation but it must be done properly and in accordance with the law,” he said.
Koyoo said any attempts to deliberately shut down the factories so as to sell it “cheaply” to an investor will be resisted.
“Muhoroni and Chemelil must be made vibrant in production before they are sold. We cannot accept plans to sell them as scrap metals,” he said.
Kenya Union of Sugar Plantation and Allied Workers general secretary Francis Wangara said workers were suffering over salary arrears.
Wangara said the government only paid the arrears owed to the farmers but failed to address their plight.
The government needs to urgently intervene to rescue workers from suffering, he said, adding that they are languishing in poverty.
Workers wondered why they are being treated unfairly.
“We want the government to find ways to offset our arrears the same way they paid the arrears owed to farmers by the companies,” Wangara said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris