Kenya: “Our trade unions will not be satisfied until they can freely contribute to the social and economic development of the worker as a class.” These were words written by the late Tom Mboya in his book 'Freedom and After' published six years before his assassination.

Before his death, Mboya was one of the figureheads of the African trade union movement. At 28, Mboya had completed an industrial management course at Britain’s Ruskin College, elected the secretary general of the Kenya Federation of Labour, and chairman of the inaugural All-African Peoples’ Conference (AAPC). Fifty years after writing those words, social-economic emancipation among Kenya’s low-income workers remains a mirage.

The Kenyan trade union system which the late Mboya struggled to strengthen, is at a turning point and the Central Organisations of Trade Unions (Cotu) is at the centre. For the first time since his election at the helm of Cotu 15 years ago, the reign of Francis Atwoli, the sixth Cotu secretary general is facing a credible threat.

Last month, Atwoli accused Labour Cabinet Secretary Kazungu Kambi of abdicating his duties and causing the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) to lose Sh1.7 billion through the controversial Tassia Housing project. In response, Kambi fired Atwoli and Federation of Kenya Employers executive director Jacqueline Mugo from the board of trustees at NSSF, a decision later overturned by the High Court. Cotu had earlier called for a nationwide strike  scheduled to take place yesterday but it was later called off. This is the second time this year that Atwoli and Kambi are facing off after a public row that overshadowed this year’s Labour Day celebrations.

Today, labour industry experts say it is high time that the role, structures and philosophy of trade unions are realigned towards the changing times. University of Nairobi’s Prof Leopold Mureithi has been a consulting economist with several labour organisations including the International Labour Federation (ILO) and has written extensively on Kenya’s labour sector. According to Prof Mureithi, the supremacy battles being witnessed are not entirely a surprise and have an institutional and historical element. “Traditionally there have been three main centres of power in Kenya’s trade union movement, Cotu, KNUT and the civil servants,” he explains.

“Cotu, which was considered private sector and the civil servants/public sector workers have wanted to form their own union but have been unable due to the past political regimes.” Prof Mureithi further explains that labour unions in the past were formed alongside job-definitions that were not very well refined.

“The Kenyan labour market was rudimentary back then and the earliest labour unions were made of cotton pickers, potters, railway workers and the like.” Over the years however, there has been increased differentiation in Kenya’s labour market prompting the emergence of splinter unions which felt inadequately represented in the larger unions. “Things have changed and priorities have been realigned in the last decades and we need to shift our labour unions in accordance to these changes as well,” he said.

 

Tripartite system

“As time goes, by some of the unions stop being relevant to a section of their affiliates for example, you can’t combine nurses and domestic workers in one union.” “Also, the way that trade unions carry out elections should be looked at because Cotu elects its leaders based on an Electoral College system which some argue does not provide for maximum representation.”

According to David Owiro, a labour economist with the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) it is essential to first evaluate the performance of trade unions in order to determine whether they have adequately represented workers. “You need some evidence or some case studies to determine whether workers in Kenya have been adequately represented because there is valid argument to be made for both cases,” he said.

Owiro said labour unions are known to negotiate for payment and the national framework is that negotiation is done through a tripartite system and CBAs have been the norm over the years. “In terms of the minimum wage increments that have happened over the years, the labour trade unions have had some success. The downside however, has been that labour unions have been unsuccessful in the private sector,” he said.

Mr Owiro further states that it is also high time that the spotlight be turned on the informal sector to which the largest population of workers belong but have no representation. “To ensure that the trade union movement grows they need to lend their voice and representation to the informal sector which is the biggest,” he says. Mr Owiro further states that the formation of more unions could be a blessing for workers since they now have a larger catalogue of options of representation to chose from.


 

Business
Premium Ruto's food security hopes facing storm amid fake fertiliser scam
Business
Premium Nairobi business community plans protest as over 700 containers held at port
Real Estate
Premium Affordable housing: Will State's data-backed action now pay off?
Real Estate
Premium Building to the skies, but at what cost?