No fanfare as workers mark Labour Day
Central Organization of Trade Unions (Cotu-K) Secretary-General Francis Atwoli delivers his remarks during Labour Day celebrations at State House Gardens in Nairobi on May 1, 2021.
For the second year running, Labour Day celebration traditions were shunned in favour of a low-key event at State House due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Unlike previous years where part of the celebrations involved hundreds of workers from various cadres marching round a stadium in front of cheering masses, Saturday’s event was a solemn one with only four speakers.
Central Organization of Trade Unions (Cotu) Secretary-General Francis Atwoli, known for elaborate Labour Day speeches packed with all manner of theatrics, gave a short speech – as per his standards.
Among the issues he touched on is the controversial Safaricom staff redeployment initiative as the telecommunication company seeks to adopt an “agile” working system.
“He has come up with a very good programme to spur that company to very high heights,” Mr Atwoli said of Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa.
“But there are areas he needs to be told that they’re not good. You cannot ask in-serving officers to reapply when you’re making changes. You can only shortlist them, you can evaluate them. If they can’t fit into the new system, you ask them kindly to retire and they go home.”
Mr Atwoli also spoke on the plight of supermarket attendants, urging their employers to be more considerate about them.
And, expectedly, he had something to say on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), urging President Uhuru Kenyatta to keep the spirit of the “handshake” he had with ODM leader Raila Odinga three years ago.
The Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) executive director Jacqueline Mugo said the Covid-19 pandemic is still a threat to enterprises, jobs and livelihoods.
She also praised a memorandum of understanding signed last year between FKE, Cotu and the government which has helped employers retain workers even when they have been out of work due to loss of business.
Mrs Mugo further asked the political class to be considerate of the country’s business as the 2022 General Election nears.
“We call upon all the political players to embrace social dialogue and tolerance especially as we head to the General Election next year,” she said.
Labour Cabinet Secretary praised Mr Kenyatta for fast-tracking a children’s Bill that had been lagging for 15 years.
