Health unions decry intimidation as strike enters day five

Health care unions have accused some county governments of using intimidation, coercion and cunning tactics to force striking healthcare workers back to work.

Speaking in Nairobi on Thursday, the Kenya National Union of Nurses and the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers termed it as luring healthcare workers into death traps in the pretext of returning on duty to serve Kenyans.

“The unions noting the serious risks nurses and clinical officers are facing working in most deplorable and unacceptable conditions wish to draw the levels of government on the provisions of the occupational safety and health Act 2007,” KUCO chairman Peterson Wachira.

They are now calling on all members to report to their immediate supervisor any situation which the employee has reasonable grounds to believe presents an imminent or serious danger to their safety or health.

They have further hit out at the Council of Governors over what they term as lack of commitment and sincerity to come to the table and discuss the issues at hand.

The CoG chair Wycliffe Oparanya in a statement on Thursday urged the healthcare workers to understand the prevailing circumstances that are being faced globally, nationally and at the county level.

“Most of the issues raised by the unions are specific to certain counties and therefore not all. We urge the health workers’ unions to resolve the issues with the concerned counties,” Oparanya said.

“The four issues that cut across the 47 counties namely conversion of all contractual employment to permanent and pensionable terms, enhancement or risk allowance, declaration of Covid-19 as a work occupational health hazard and establishment of a health service commission are currently being addressed by a multi-agency committee,” Oparanya added.

But the nurses and clinicians have vowed not to go back to work until both levels of government commit to continuously and consistently provide adequate PPEs for all healthcare workers while on duty, provide a group life insurance cover, comprehensive medical insurance cover and pay all outstanding salaries.

Reports indicate some of the healthcare workers are yet to be paid for a period of between four to 15 months.

“We were supposed to have a conciliatory meeting to discuss the way forward but the CoG sent very junior officials. Another meeting was scheduled on Wednesday but both the CoG and the National treasury officials were a no show,” the officials said.

They have further dismissed reports by Oparanya that only half of the counties are on strike. On Wednesday, KNUN SG Seth Panyako had said that three counties were yet to join in the industrial action, and blamed it on the branch leadership.