• Dr Abidan Mwachi, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Union coast branch secretary general, said the letters cited their participation in an ‘illegal’ strike.
• Mwachi said the Labour Relations Court had declined to declare the strike illegal as sought by Governor Hassan Joho's administration.
The Mombasa administration on Wednesday fired striking doctors and ordered them to move out of staff quaters.
Dr Abidan Mwachi, the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Union coast branch secretary general, said the letters cited their participation in an ‘illegal’ strike.
But Mwachi said the Labour Relations Court had declined to declare the strike illegal as sought by Governor Hassan Joho's administration.
The matter is expected to come up again before the court on January 18.
Speaking to the press at the Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital on Wednesday, Mwachi said they will not be cowed by the intimidation tactics.
“Instead of addressing the issues that have been raised by the doctors, they are now giving us letters purporting to have sacked our members,” he said.
The doctors went on strike to demand an end to salary delays, non-remittance of statutory deduction and overdue promotions.
“The county has been deducting monies from our payslips to remit to NHIF, PAYE and bank loans. However, this has not been happening,” Mwachi said.
“Members who have bank loans are surprised to see that they have defaulted for several months, despite the fact that deductions reflect on their payslips.”
The unionist said their members have been forced to pay their own NHIF cover.
“In October last year, when we first signed the return-to-work formula, the county government promised to refund our money and address the problems. But nothing was done until we went on strike again on December 21,” he said.
On December 24, the county administration asked doctors for a meeting on Christmas Day.
“After we failed to attend the meeting on Christmas Day, which is a holiday, the have now decided to take disciplinary action against our members,” he added.
(edited by o. owino)