The Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) has warned of a nationwide strike in support of the striking hospital staff at the Kenyatta University Teaching Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH).
While speaking in Mombasa on November 3, KNUN Secretary General Seth Panyako made the announcement while demanding that the concerns of the striking nurses, who form a great majority of staff at the hospital be addressed.
“As the national union of nurses, we stand tall with the striking nurses at KUTRRH and immediately demand that their issues be taken into account and addressed,” he stated.
Panyako also sided with the striking nurses in calling for the dissolution of the KUTRRH Board which is chaired by former Kenyatta University Vice Chancellor Prof. Oliver Mugenda.
He criticised Mugenda, accusing her of mismanaging the hospital and carrying out duties beyond her mandate.
“Mugenda has been directly registering workers, a move that is against the law. Also, she has been sending workers on leave and recalling them from leave, which is not under her mandate,” Panyako asserted.
“This is the job of the Chief Executive Officer, not the board chair. She has also halted the issuance of medical insurance cover to the hospital staff, further derailing their working conditions,” he claimed.
Panyako alleged that Mugenda was behind efforts to dismiss the immediate former CEO, Ahmed Dagane, who was sent on leave. He argued that the move was detrimental to the health facility, noting that the hospital had made significant progress under Dagane.
“The CEO who was in charge of KUTRRH was voted the best CEO in the past year amongst government health facilities. Why move to dismiss someone who was voted the best CEO?” he stated.
“We hereby call for the immediate dissolution of the KUTRRH Board, starting with the chair, Olive Mugenda,” Panyako asserted.
Staff at KUTRRH took to the streets on Monday, December 3, citing poor staff morale, a toxic work environment, stagnation in the same job group, loss of income, mental health challenges, and staff attrition as reasons for their protest.
Consequently, the staff issued a memo with ten demands for the hospital management, with proper designation and alignment of job grades being the top priority.
The workers also demanded equity and fairness in the workplace, particularly concerning employment terms. They reported that despite having similar qualifications, some staff were employed on a permanent basis while others were on contracts, hindering their career progression.
