The decision on whether doctor’s one-month strike will end will be known today when their union meets the government side at the Treasury this morning.
Yesterday, the doctors remained skeptical about the government offer, claiming that it was no different from the previous one tabled by Health Cabinet secretary Cleopa Mailu which they had rejected.
The move follows a meeting which was convened by President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House in Mombasa on Wednesday.
While the Head of State offered goodies to end the strike that has caused paralysis and contributed to more than 40 reported deaths in public hospitals across the country, the doctors sought more time to evaluate the offer.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), led by its secretary general Ouma Oluga and chair Samuel Oroko, has maintained that the 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) should be implemented to end the stalemate between the two sides.
Among other demands, the doctors who downed their tools on December 5 are calling for a 300 per cent pay rise as contained in the CBA.
KMPDU deputy secretary general Mercy Korir has, however, downplayed the Mombasa deal saying it was not any different from what Mailu offered the union last year.
She accused the government of undermining the CBA which she argued will improve healthcare delivery in many aspects.
Korir termed the offer by President Uhuru as mere promises and reiterated that the fate of the strike, which has now entered the second month, will be decided today.
“The only people who stand to benefit from the offer are the medical interns who will now enter at Job group M and with a starting stipend of Sh44,000 from the current Sh35,000,” she said.
According to a Wednesday statement from State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu, the entry level grade for doctors of Job Group “M” from “L” puts doctors higher than other public servants and recognizes doctors’ professional training.
The government also proposed to enhance emergency call allowance from the current Sh30,000 to Sh66,000 for people in Job Group L, increase to Sh72,000 from Sh30,000 salaries for Job Groups M to P and an increase of Sh80,000 from Sh30,000 for Job Groups Q and above.
In addition, the government also offered a new doctors’ risk allowance at a flat rate of Sh10,000 per month. Esipisu added that the sum total of the government’s offer means that the minimum gross salary for doctors will increase to Sh196,989 from the current Sh140,244.
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