The 100 days of pain, despair and death for Kenyans in need of medical care at public hospitals came to an end yesterday after striking doctors signed an agreement with the National and county governments and agreed to return to work immediately.
The deal that had been facilitated by religious leaders was signed by the Ministry of Health, the Council of Governors and the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), bringing to an end the long drawn-out industrial dispute that caused untold agony to millions of Kenyans dependent on public health institutions for medical care.
Health Cabinet secretary Cleopa Mailu described the strike period as “one hundred dark days” and vowed that the government would do everything possible to avert such a situation in future.
The strike has gone down in trade union circles as among the longest of industrial disputes in Kenya but the most debilitating in terms of loss of lives.
Under the Return-to-Work-Formula (RTWF) signed yesterday, none of the doctors who participated in the strike will be victimised and any disciplinary action commenced by either the National and county governments shall be unconditionally reversed.
Last week, Kenyatta National Hospital fired 12 doctors and disciplinary measures had commenced for 48 others. The punishments to be withdrawn shall include show-cause and dismissal letters, any other written or verbal punishment or threats of punishment emanating from the industrial action.
“There shall be no victimisation whatsoever by, or of any party herein, and the employers shall forthwith and unconditionally stop all disciplinary processes and unconditional withdraw all show-cause letters, dismissal letters and any other written or verbal punishment emanating from this industrial action,” stated the RTWF in part.
“This includes, but is not limited to, arbitrary transfers and discriminatory assignments of duties by the employer to the leaders of KMPDU,” the document added.
The doctors were represented by their officials led by KMPDU secretary general Dr Ouma Oluga, while the government was represented the Mailu, Council of Governors chairman Peter Munya and governors James Ongwae (chairman of CoG Labour committee) and Jack Ranguma (CoG Health committee).
The three parties will now discuss and implement the controversial 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) within 60 days from yesterday.
The current emergency allowance has now been renamed ‘Doctors Allowance’ and is payable to all medical practitioners, pharmacists and dentists.
“As the doctors union, we have concluded a Return-To-Work Formula between the government and ourselves, bringing to an end the strike by doctors that has consumed the country for 100 days.
It has been one of the most difficult industrial actions in the country,” said Oluga. “I want to announce here that the doctors union has finally put to an end the strike,” Oluga declared at a joint press conference with government officials and religious leaders who brokered the deal at Delta House, the CoG headquarters.
Oluga also announced that the union would today sign a modified RTWF with the managements of KNH and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital.
The parties also agreed to withdraw all impending court cases before the Employment and Labour Relations court with each party bearing its costs and to demonstrate good faith, going forward.
Munya, on his part, said. “What you have witnessed is an agreement between the county governments and the doctors union, bringing to an end the strike that has lasted 100 days.
We have just signed a RTWF formula bringing to an end one of the most painful experiences for Kenyans.” And a visibly relieved Mailu said: “I am glad that the strike has ended but I must say that it was a regrettable situation that will go to the black books of Kenyan history.”
The country’s more than 5,000 doctors have been on strike since December 5, 2016 demanding better pay and to protest the dilapidated state of public hospitals.
The doctors have been demanding a 300 per cent pay increase that the National government and counties dismissed as unrealistic.
The 300 per cent increase was contained in a 2013 CBA which the government equally dismissed on grounds that it had not been deposited before the Labour Relations Court.
The doctors were also demanding that both the National and county governments pay their emergency allowances before they could resume work, backdated to January last year.
Efforts by the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) secretary general Francis Atwoli, Kenya National Commission on Human Rights and the Law Society of Kenya to broker a deal between the government and the doctors bore no fruit, leading to the union officials being put in civil jail for one month, before the sentence was lifted by the Court of Appeal after they served two days.
But it was religious leaders, comprising John Cardinal Njue (Catholic), Archbishop Jackson ole Sapit (Anglican) and Sheikh Adan Wachu (Supkem), among others, who finally brokered a deal between the two parties.
Court of Appeal Judges Martha Koome, Hannah Okwengu and Jamilla Mohamed had on Monday given the doctors, Ministry of Health and the CoG a 24-hour ultimatum to seal the deal and sign the RTWF.
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