Kakamega nurses have issued a seven-day strike notice to the county government over failure to implement a return to work formula signed in November 2017.
Kenya National Union of Nurses secretary general Seth Panyako in a notice signed February 11 said the county breached the agreement by failing to pay for their services and uniform allowances starting July 1 last year as agreed in the deal signed by the union and the national and county governments.
Panyako said attempts by the union to resolve the matter amicably through meetings had not been successful.
He demanded that the county implements the agreement within seven days and backdate the payments to July last year, failing which they will withdraw services starting Monday.
“The strike will continue until full implementation is achieved,” he said.
But President Uhuru Kenyatta yesterday ordered all striking nurses to resume work by tomorrow morning in what signals an imminent confrontation between the medics and the law enforcers.
KNUN Kakamega branch secretary Renson Bulunya, however, said in spite of many commitments by the county officials, none has been fulfilled.
“We earlier opted for dialogue but have finally decided to use the language the government understands better — to paralise health services starting from the dispensary level to level 4 and 5,” he said in Kakamega after serving the notice.
Speaking at his Emabole home on Saturday, during a thanksgiving for being elected Council of Governors chairman, Oparanya pleaded with nurses to give dialogue a chance in resolving challenges facing them in discharging their services.
“This business of going on strike is not in the interest panther people. Come we sit down and dialogue on issues at hand and we’ll find a solution shall find a solution,” the governor said.