Labour Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yattani has defended proposed amendments to workers' rights, saying they are necessary.
The proposed changes include a requirement that emergency services are not grounded entirely during work boycotts and extension of a notice to strike to allow ample time to resolve disputes.
Mr Yattani said in coming up with the changes, the Government was only protecting citizens and they (proposals) should not be seen as an infringement of workers’ rights.
He said the country could not continue operating with laws that were formulated in the 1960s yet the labourand economic environments had changed.
The proposals to amend the Labour Relations Acts demand that whenever there is a strike, provision of essential services by workers should not stop.
The amendments dictate that a collective bargaining agreement should indicate Kenyans depending on these essential services will not be affected. This means some workers will not be eligible to participate in industrial action.
Energy sector
Workers to be affected include those in healthcare, telecommunication, Meteorological Department, port and navigation workers, and energy sector - mainly Kenya Power - and fuel distribution.
Central Organisation of Trade Unions Secretary General Francis Atwoli has opposed the changes, saying they require public participation.
“Saying that essential services during strikes should not be affected does not make sense. Workers’ rights are constitutional rights and cannot be changedthrough the back door,” said Mr Atwoli.
But Mr Yattani maintained that the changes did not mean workers would not be allowed to go on strike.
“They will go on strike but under new instructions,” he said.
“The right to go on strike shall be limited as for the purpose of ensuring the continuation of essential services for the preservation of the life and health of the population and of property," the proposed lawread.
Last year, Yattani said the country almost came to a standstill due to boycotts.
