Kisumu: Clinical officers have accused Nairobi and Marsabit county governments of failing to resolve long-standing grievances, prolonging an industrial action that has disrupted health services for months despite the union suspending its nationwide strike last month.
According to Kenya News Agency, the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) stated that the two counties had failed to implement return-to-work agreements, leaving hundreds of clinicians off duty and patients without essential services. KUCO Chairman, Peterson Wachira, emphasized that the union ended a 36-day nationwide strike on January 28 after reaching an agreement with all 47 county governments. However, three counties – Baringo, Nairobi, and Marsabit – were allowed to continue the industrial action due to unresolved issues.
“Baringo has since resolved the issues and our members are back to work. But Nairobi and Marsabit remain on strike. We also have the national government, where the CS for Health is yet to sign our CBA, which was one of the key issues that led to the strike,” Wachira said. Speaking at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) in Kisumu, Wachira expressed disappointment that although county governments had signed the CBA, the Ministry of Health had not, despite a public pledge by the CS Adan Duale to sign once counties complied.
Wachira highlighted that the ongoing impasse in Nairobi and Marsabit threatens to deepen the strain on public health facilities, with patients bearing the brunt of the prolonged strike. KUCO General Secretary George Gibore noted that clinical officers in Nairobi had been on strike for more than 50 days, citing the county’s failure to prioritize health services.
“It is worrying that a county as large as Nairobi cannot prioritize the issues of health. The effort being put in place does not commensurate with the needs of the residents,” he said. Gibore stated that both Nairobi and Marsabit had signed return-to-work agreements but failed to implement them, triggering continued industrial action.
In Marsabit, he described the situation as dire, claiming that the county had failed to provide medical cover for health workers for three years despite budgeting for it annually. “For the last three years, the county has never provided medical cover for any healthcare worker. Money is deducted but not remitted to third parties. That is a criminal offence under the Employment Act,” he said. He added that clinical officers in Marsabit had not received promotions for more than a decade, despite funds being allocated in county budgets each year.
“The issue of promotion alone requires Sh8 million, which is money facilities can collect in less than two days. Yet the county is unable or unwilling to address it,” Gibore said, adding that delayed salaries had compounded the crisis. Clinical officers in Marsabit initially went on strike in October last year before the court ordered a 30-day return to work in December to allow negotiations. However, the union says the county has remained unyielding.
As a long-term measure, Gibore called for a constitutional audit of the devolved health system, proposing a centralized mechanism to manage human resources for health to ensure uniform standards across counties. “We need a centralized system to manage human resources for health so that we can have uniformity in addressing issues affecting healthcare workers. We saw during Covid-19 that centralized management helped the country respond effectively,” Gibore said. He reaffirmed that despite the standoff, the union remains open to dialogue and that its members in the affected counties are ready to resume duty once the agreed issues are addressed.
