Through the Ministry of Labour, the Kenyan government, on Monday, April 24, proposed a new rule that will benefit Kenyan employees in the private and public sectors.
The government, through an employer-government partnership, will set up a Workers Compensation Fund Authority (WCFA) to compensate workers who get injured or die on duty.
Labour Principal Secretary Geoffrey Kaituko stated that a successful plan was implemented in Tanzania, and Kenya was keen on launching a benchmarking scheme to guide employers.
Kaituko explained that employers will be mandated to contribute monthly towards the WCFA, an independent authority.
The money contributed by the employers will be used as a form of insurance for workers who get injured or die.
In case of a work accident, the company will only need to write a letter to WCFA, and the employee will be promptly compensated.
“Currently, the process of compensating workers is unnecessarily tedious and sometimes employees have to go to court to get the funds,” the PS revealed the need to establish the new kitty.
Kenyan firms currently use the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OSHA) 2007, in case of work-related accidents.
The Act secures the safety, health and welfare of persons at work; and protects persons other than those at work against risks to safety and health arising out of, or in connection with, the activities of those employed.
The Act further prohibits the employer from deducting the employee’s salary in case of any damage that occurs at the workplace.
“An employer shall not make any deduction from an employee’s remuneration or levy, or permit to be levied on any of his employees any charge in respect to work-related accidents,” the Act states in part.
To prevent work-related accidents, OSHA dictates that every company conduct risk assessments in relation to the safety and health of persons employed.
“An employer who fails to do so shall on conviction be liable to a fine not exceeding five hundred thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both,” the law dictates.
Kaituko wants to move OSHA from the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection and place it in an autonomous, independent department where it will be in charge of WCFA.
The process had already started in earnest, with Kaituko writing to the Attorney General’s office and the Kenya Law Reform Commission to oversee the implementation of the proposals.
