Now this is absolutely worrying! This wage bill reduction debate is far from over! As a country we must prepare to make tought decisions to sort out the problem! 2,350 County Workers to be Retrenched Over 1.2 Billion Wage Bill Deficit The County Government of Mombasa has 4,350 employees who cost an annual wage bill of Ksh 4 billion and is now under pressure to downsize the workforce to 2,000 workers even as the rest of the country deliberates on calls to cut down spending on salaries. According to pressure groups operating the county, Mombasa was collecting just Ksh 2.5 billion a year in revenue while it struggled with a heavier paycheque load. To meet the deficit in salaries alone, the county has to depend on the allocation of Ksh 4.3 billion from the central government. “Does it make sense for an employer to pay workers Ksh 4 billion yet he makes only Ksh 2.5 billion from the business?” poses Phyllis Muema, director of Kenya Community Support Centre. In her opinion reduction of the wage burden remains the only way the county could realise development. “We demand the reduction of the workforce as it is weighing heavily on the county, depriving residents of funds for development. Mwasaru Mwambi, executive director of the Muslim for Human Rights (Muhuri) has also asked the county to adopt a report by Ernst & Young to cleanse the county’s workforce rot. In 2013, the county inherited a workforce of 2,550 from the defunct Municipal Council but the number has now ballooned to 4,350. This pushed the wage bill from 1.9 billion to 4 billion rendering the county’s wage bill at the mercy of Treasury’s allocation. Interestingly, the county also boasts some of the least qualified workers according to the Ernst & Young staff audit report. “It is time the county bosses sacked the majority of workers who are primary school leavers and hire qualified personnel,” said Ms. Muema. In the past, however, Suleiman Mohamed, the Mombasa branch Kenya County Workers Union chairman has defended the workers with low qualifications saying most of the work done was menial. “Most of the county workers do odd jobs. You don’t need a degree to be a cleaner,” he said.
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 14:25:19 +0000
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