Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki revoked the legal notice that mandated Private Security Companies to comply with the Ksh30,000 minimum wage policy.
In a MyGov notice published in the local dailies, the Interior CS declared the notice null and void, meaning that the private security service providers would not be forced to increase the salaries of the security guards to a minimum of Ksh30,000 as championed by Fazul Mahamed,the Private Security Regulatory Authority (PSRA) boss.
"It is hereby notified for the general information of the public that the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration has revoked Legal Notice No. PSRA/001/2024 dated February 5, 2024, by the Private Security Regulatory Authority," the notice read in part.
PSRA had in a notice issued in February warned that private companies that did not adhere to the directive would be deemed to have breached the provisions of the Private Security Regulation Act No.13 of 2016.
As such, Mahamed announced the cancellation of the licenses of nine private security firms. These included Victory Protective Services Africa Limited, Victory Consultants Limited, Bedrock Security Services Limited, Bedrock Security Alarms Systems and Product Limited and Seneca East Africa Limited.
Hipora Security Solutions Limited, Salama Fikira International (Kenya) Limited, Marco Security Limited and Superb Marketing Solutions Limited also had their licenses cancelled as well.
The licences of the nine firms were cancelled following the lapse of a seven-day ultimatum by PSRA requiring the companies to comply with the directive.
"The purpose of this legal notice is to bring this information to the attention of users, prospective users or representatives of users of security services and further advise that they must not procure, hire or otherwise engage security services from the listed non-compliant private security companies."
At the time, Mahamed maintained that anyone who engaged the services of an unlicensed private security firm was liable to pay a fine or imprisonment or both for individuals or a Ksh2 million fine for corporates.
What This Means
Following the revocation of the notice, private security companies are banned from implementing the Ksh30,000 minimum wage policy. PSRA boss Fazul Mahamed had indicated a Ksh30,000 minimum wage for guards in Nairobi and Ksh27,000 for those operating outside the Nairobi Metropolitan Area.
Currently, the minimum pay for daytime security guards is pegged at Ksh15,000 and Ksh16,000 for the officers on night duty.
The associations had called upon the Interior CS to intervene after months of uncertainty regarding the directive. This is after Labour CS Florence Bore dismissed PSRA, arguing that her ministry could not validate the pay increment policy.
