Barely a day after securing a win in court, the Ministry of Interior is making strides to ensure that the monthly salary of security guards is promptly increased to a minimum wage of Ksh30,000.
Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo, on Thursday morning, met with the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) Deputy Chief Executive Officer Victor Ogalo to formalise the discussion.
In a statement, Omollo disclosed that the discussion between the two parties on security reforms aimed at improving remuneration for private security guards and procurement of services from adequately trained personnel.
"Additionally, there was discussion on a much-needed partnership in cybersecurity management," read the statement in part.
Omollo and Ogalo's meeting came a day after the Employment and Labour Relations Court dismissed a case filed by nine security companies contesting the minimum wage increase.
The suit had resulted from a Private Security Regulatory Authority (PSRA) Chief Executive Fazul Mahamed directive to all security companies to raise the minimum wage to Ksh30,000 within seven days.
Fazul warned that companies that fail to adhere to the change would have their registration and licensing status reviewed, potentially leading to revocation. The directive was issued on January 29, 2024.
The directive from PSRA, which is under the CS Kithure Kindiki-led Interior Ministry, however, created a clash with the Labour Ministry, with CS Florence Bore arguing that labour issues were under her jurisdiction.
In her missive, Bore faulted Kindiki emphasising that her ministry had a constitutional mandate to increase salaries.
“As a Ministry, we cannot authenticate the stated publications and this is best responded to by the Ministry of Interior and National Administration or the Authority referred to in the publications,” her statement read in part.
A consortium of security companies, while siding with Bore, also argued that the PSRA directive would injure the sector leading to 700,000 job cuts.
In a joint statement released on February 7, the Protective Security Industry Association (PSIA) and Protective and Safety Association of Kenya (PROSAK) argued that most security companies will be forced to lay off half their staff to cushion themselves from the hiked costs of employment.
The security firms later filed a suit seeking orders to have the government agency's decision to deregister them for protesting the minimum wage increment declared unlawful.
In its ruling yesterday, the court noted that the companies had failed to prove that the agency's move was against the law. The court also concluded that the increase was not a labour issue.
“The issue before this court relates to a dispute between security firms and the relevant governing bodies and not one in respect to employment and labour relations,” the ruling read in part.
“The jurisdiction of this court is limited to disputes relating to employment and labour relations as enshrined under Article 162(2)(a) of the Constitution and this does not reflect in the instant case.”
