A union has filed a court case against looming retrenchment of workers by the cash-strapped Moi University.
The Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) has termed the layoffs a violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the university management and the union.
UASU filed the case last Friday at the labour court in Nairobi, according to the union’s local chapter official, Mr Nyabuta Ojuki.
The university management has defended the impending staff redundancy arguing that it has been necessitated by a reduction in revenue as a result of decline in student enrolment and the ballooning wage bill.
“We hereby give formal notice of an intention to declare redundancy affecting a number of employees who are members of your union. The details of the employees that shall be affected and the proposed timeline for the redundancy process will be communicated to you in due course,” reads a notice signed by the acting Vice Chancellor Prof Kiplagat Kotut, .
“As far as we know, there are other avenues the management can source additional funds to sustain operations without necessarily sacking the workers. In any case the employees cannot be blamed for the declining student enrolment rate that contributed to the shrinking revenue,” said Mr Bob Odhiambo the Kusu, Moi university branch chairman.
Moi University student numbers have dropped from 50,000 in 2015 to 27,000 in 2021 and about 4,800 in 2024 against a capacity of 15,000 students.
Prof Kotut disclosed that the management will engage the affected employees and their union representatives in accordance with the law and the UASU CBA.
“Our objective is to explore possible alternatives to limit the impact of the redundancy, including potential redeployment or alternative roles where possible,” added the notice.
The university management has promised to comply with the provisions of the Employment Act, individual contract and the UASU 2012/2013 CBA in the impending staff redundancy.
The employees to be affected by the layoffs will be entitled to severance pay, salary in lieu of notice, payment for accrued leave days and any other unpaid benefits due to them.
“All necessary deductions will be made in accordance with the applicable statutory requirements,” added the notice.
Some 324 workers on contract basis were two months ago issued with dismissal letters due to what the management attributed to reduced workload occasioned by the drastic decline in student enrolment figures.
The university management attributed the decision not to renew contracts for casual workers to decline in student numbers, closure of non-viable campuses, reduced exchequer funding due to implementation of Differentiated Unit Cost (DUC) in computing the recurrent capitation and rising cost of personnel emolument due to national CBAs that have not been fully funded.
Treasury allocated an additional Sh1.8 billion to Moi University to pay its employees and meet other recurrent expenses in the current financial year.
The Ministry of Education last year appointed a new management team to salvage the financially troubled Moi University.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba appointed Prof Noah Midamba the new council chairman after President Ruto promised to constitute a committee to evaluate the scale of crisis facing the university and recommend long lasting solution.
Prof Ronald Wasike, Dr Mercy Nyambura Kanyara, Dr Edwin Sambili and Anne Weceke Makori are members of the university council.
The council has consequently appointed Prof Kotut, the immediate former deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic, Research and Extension) at the University of Embu, interim VC to lead the university.
