The bid by Kisii County Assembly members to sack the entire Public Service Board officials suffered a temporary setback late Tuesday.
This was after the Labour court sitting in Kisumu quashed their ejection from office.
The ruling by Justice Christine Baari gives reprieve to the embattled board officials to continue discharging duties until their application is heard and determined.
"The honourable court is hereby pleased to grant leave to the ex parte applicants to file a judicial review motion seeking orders of prohibition restraining the Clerk, the Speak and the governor from processing the interested party's petition dated 6/3/2023 by the third respondent pending the hearing and determination of the judicial review motion," the judge said.
The application for the judicial review of the petition seeking their sacking was done on Tuesday, hours after the assembly, save for two members, unanimously voted to sack the board.
The defendants are Kisii County Assembly Clerk, the Speaker, the governor and petitioner Benson Atika.
The appellants are board chair Nancy Nyamwange, her deputy Bogonko Ondiba and members Patrick Momanyi, John Ndege and Judy Omare.
Earlier on Tuesday, 69 out of 71 MCAs voted to resoundingly send the board members packing over alleged abuse of office.
The sacking was a culmination of a two-week long grilling by the Assembly Labour Committee led by Nyacheki MCA Naftal Onkoba.
The members, had inter alia, been accused of violating the recruitment procedures and standards.
Other accusations bordered on arbitrary renewal and extension of term for aging staff in the devolved unit.
The application for the stay orders at the Labour court means there shall be no recruitment of new board officials by the county.
Their application, among other prayers, sought for the judicial review of the petition which rooted for their removal from office.
The court order thus prohibits the County from processing the orders as unanimously reached in the assembly sitting.
The board members shall therefore continue discharging their duties till a fresh review of the circumstances of the petition on May 16.
The application was made Tuesday by NE Mogusu before Justice Christine Baari.
