SRC kicks off public wage bill debate in all 47 counties

                      Sarah  Serem       PHOTO: COURTESY 

By Macharia  Kamau

Kenya: The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) will beginning on Monday take the debate on public wage bill to the counties. SRC is expected to take views from the counties on the debate it launched two weeks ago seeking to get views on how to tame the wage bill seen to be threatening the country’s economic growth.

Public views collected during the debate are expected to inform the Commission in developing a wage policy. Sarah Serem , the chairperson SRC is expected to lead a team in a public forum in Nyandarua consultation meeting with the members of the Nakuru County Assembly. SRC said other commissioners would also be visiting other counties thereafter.

Take two weeks

The commissioners will visit all the 47 counties starting from Monday in an exercise that will take two weeks. The public sector wage bill for the financial year is at a whooping Sh521 billion against the total budget of Sh1.6 trillion.

“Kenya has exceeded its expenditure as we are at 43 per cent yet by international standards it is not supposed to exceed 40 per cent,” said Serem.

The huge wage bill not coupled by productivity poses a great threat to a sustainable economy and funding of important projects as outlined in the Vision 2030.

“These engagements will help us develop public wage policy that will help bring order and sanity in the salary structure for the public sector,” said Serem.