Nurses strike to continue until 2017 CBA is implemented, union says

Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives officials led by Seth Panyako during a media briefing on the ongoing strike on September 1,2026.[Benard Orwongo Standard]

Nurses have vowed to continue their nationwide strike until the government fully implements the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) Secretary-General Seth Panyako said the union had yet to reach an agreement with the Council of Governors (CoG) on the CBA, despite progress on other demands.

“Unless we have an agreeable agreement, we will press on with our strike,” Panyako said.

His remarks come after CoG chairperson Ahmed Abdullahi called on governors to take action against nurses who have continued with the nationwide strike, saying the demands being made by the health workers were financially unsustainable.

Panyako, however, said the union would not call off the strike until the 2017 CBA is resolved, dismissing governors' position on the agreement.

The union disputed Abdullahi's claims that the 2017 CBA was signed under duress, insisting that it was a valid agreement reached between the union and the government.

“The CBA, we do not have a deal yet. CoG are running away from the 2017 agreement,” said Panyako.

He dismissed concerns over the cost of implementing the deal, saying the amount required was not excessive given that the agreement had already been negotiated and signed.

Panyako also accused the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) of frustrating the implementation of the agreement, adding that nurses would camp at the SRC headquarters on Thursday, September 3, for the entire day until their grievances are addressed.

“We will be camping at the SRC the whole day until our grievances are sorted,” he said.

Despite the unresolved CBA dispute, the union has secured progress on the employment of healthcare workers recruited under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme.

According to Panyako, the governors have agreed to start issuing permanent and pensionable letters to the workers this week.

The union has also agreed with CoG to establish a committee to review career progression guidelines for nurses. KNUN will nominate its representatives to the committee, which will work with CoG to review and localise the guidelines.

However, Panyako maintained that progress on UHC workers and career guidelines would not end the strike without an agreement on the 2017 CBA.