Atwoli calls on foreign investors to hire Kenyans directly

The Secretary General of the Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU),  Francis Atwoli, has called on foreign investors operating in Kenya to offer direct employment to Kenyan workers instead of relying on outsourcing firms.

Atwoli revealed intentions to advocate for changes to the country's outsourcing regulations, arguing that the current practices exploit workers and undermine the progress achieved by the union movement.

"You may outsource services, but every worker involved must still have the freedom to join a union," he emphasized

Speaking on Saturday at a gathering of more than 2,000 elected shop stewards and county leaders from COTU-K affiliated unions, he emphasized the need to unify their demands in preparation for presenting them to President William Ruto ahead of Labour Day on May 1.

He raised alarm over the increasing trend of outsourcing by employers, noting that it deprives the government of critical revenue needed for national development.

"Outsourced employees are not taxed, yet the government relies on revenue for development," he said, accusing employers of working together with the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) to undermine cooperation with the government.

The Employment Act (2007) and the Labour Relations Act (2007) guarantee workers the right to join trade unions and engage in collective bargaining, a provision that COTU claims many employers have been ignoring.

"Workers are the driving force behind every industry's production and must be treated with respect," he stated.

His remarks were reinforced by Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) Secretary General Davji Atellah, who urged for a review of the regulations overseeing the licensing of foreign doctors in Kenya.

Atellah noted that over the past ten years, more than 1,300 foreign doctors have been licensed to work in Kenya, even as nearly 4,000 locally trained doctors remain jobless.

"We have no issue with foreign doctors as a union, but we take issue with the exploitative terms under which they are employed," Atellah said during a press briefing at the Nairobi doctors’ Annual General Meeting on Saturday.

He added: “Private and mission hospitals have perfected the art of casualization, importing foreign doctors, confiscating their passports and forcing them into unethical procedures under deplorable conditions."

Atwoli added that the union is pushing for amendments to the International Labour Organisation Conventions 189 and 190 of 2019, pledging to work with lawmakers to strengthen workers' rights and welfare.