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Nurses in Trans Nzoia have gone on strike after 50 days of unsuccessful negotiations with the county government.
The Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives (KNUNM) Trans Nzoia branch Secretary Edward Cheruyiot said the decision was triggered by what he termed as incompetence and deliberate stalling of negotiations by certain county officials and calling on Governor George Natembeya to dismiss them.
“All 93 public health facilities in Trans Nzoia will remain closed until our demands are met. We will not return to work until the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement is signed, salaries increased, promotions effected, and 850 nurses out of 2,300 hired to address the acute shortage,” Cheruyiot said during a press briefing in Kitale.
The union also wants the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) circulars implemented, nursing service allowances increased, and Social Health Authority deductions remitted.
Other grievances include the county government’s failure to convert Universal Health Coverage (UHC) nurses from contractual terms to permanent and pensionable employment. The union said this has left many nurses in a state of job insecurity, despite their crucial role in delivering frontline healthcare services across the county.
Cheruyiot cited the county’s failure to implement the 2024 SRC salary structure and disregard for the 2017 Return-to-Work Agreement. The union said the situation has eroded trust between the parties and demonstrated a persistent pattern of neglect toward nurses’ welfare and labour rights.
The KNUNM vice chairman, Stephen Omae, reminded the county that during the consultative meeting held on November 27, 2023, both parties agreed to resubmit new proposals for consideration, and in the 2July 26, 2024 return-to-work agreement, the county committed to forming a negotiation committee by August 14, 2024, a promise he says was not honoured.
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“We are simply asking the county to honour its word. The SRC approved a Personal Guide Allowance of Sh20,000 in March 2024 and an increase in risk allowance from Sh3,850 to Sh5,000 back in 2017. None of these have been implemented,” Omae said.
The union is also pushing for annual uniform allowances of between Sh35,000 and Sh50,000, as recommended by the Ministry of Health in 2008.
KNUNM insists that their strike is protected under Articles 36 and 41 of the Constitution of Kenya, as well as ILO Conventions No. 87 and 98, which safeguard the right to organise and bargain collectively.
“This is a lawful, constitutional strike. We will not be intimidated, and we will not allow the rights of nurses to be trampled on,” said Cheruyiot.
He said that health services in Trans Nzoia will face a total shutdown until the county government addresses the nurses grievances.
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