The Council of Governors (CoG) on Tuesday April 16 warned the Kenya Kwanza Government against implementing the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed with doctors in 2017.

Speaking during a press conference in Nairobi, the governors maintained that honouring the 2017/2021 CBA is likely to plunge the country into a financial crisis.

CoG chair Anne Waiguru, who is also the Kirinyaga governor, stated that implementing the doctor’s contagious CBA may lead to other county employees demanding the same.

Waiguru added that, in case the national government bows to pressure and agrees to implement the doctors CBA, the counties will not be part of the deal.

2017 CBA, hot potato

But what is this ‘2017 CBA’ that is proving to be a hot potato?

In December 5 2016, doctors — under the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) — downed their tools in one of the most historic industrial actions in Kenya.

At the time, the health workers were pushing the government to implement a CBA signed in 2013 that, among others, sought to improve their salaries and working conditions in public hospitals.

The crisis pitted the then-President Uhuru Kenyatta’s government and governors on one side and the doctors. The two arms of government rejected to implement the CBA, with county bosses affirming that they were not involved in the 2013 deal, yet they employ largest (80%) chunk of doctors, since the health function was devolved.

Jailed KMPDU officials

The push and pull between the two warring factions — at the expense of Kenyans who depended on public health sector — would culminate in February 13th 2017, when a court sentenced KMPDU officials to one month in jail after they failed to reach an agreement with the government and call off the strike.

The KMPDU officials condemned to jail were; Samuel Oroko (chairperson), Oluga Ouma (Secretary General), Daisy Korir (Treasurer), Evelyne Chege (Deputy Treasurer), Allan Ochanji, Chibandzi Mwachonda and Titus Ondoro.

The officials would stay in prison until February 15, 2017, when they were released following an appeal by opposition leader Raila Odinga’s lawyers, led by Senior Counsel James Orengo.

Nonetheless, the more than 5,000 doctors would stand their ground and insist on the government meeting their grievances, as dozens of Kenyans lost their lives in public hospitals.

Finally on March 14, KMPDU called off the 100-day strike. This was after reaching a deal with the government, bringing forth the 2017-2021 CBA, otherwise known as 2017 CBA.

In this CBA, the government and union officials signed a deal to address pay and other burning issues, as Secretary General Oluga told journalists in Nairobi.

One of the main take home for doctors, in the CBA, was that they would work only 40 hours a week and will be compensated for extra hours. Doctors in public hospitals had been on call-at-all-times.

Seven years down the line, and the doctors are finding themselves in similar predicament, calling for the full implementation of the 2017 CBA. However, Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha says his Ministry is ready to negotiate with the doctors on a new CBA, because the current one under KMPDU lapsed in 2021.

Doctors pay

CoG boss Waiguru, during yesterday’s press conference, downplayed the doctors’ call for better pay, arguing that all health practitioners in the country are currently remunerated well.

“We also wish to bring to the attention of the public that senior medical doctors are paid 103% higher, which is double the amount that is paid to non-health workers in the public service and other doctors in the private sector,” she said.

“Currently, a County Senior Medical Officer is paid Ksh.479,000, with a basic salary of Ksh.203, 000, emergency call allowance (Ksh.80,000), house allowance (Ksh.56,000), commuter allowance (Ksh.20,000), non-practice allowance (Ksh.60,000), extraneous allowance (Ksh.40,000), and risk allowance (Ksh.20,000),” she noted.

Consequently, the governors urged the striking doctors to resume duty and terminate the strike.