Doctors chased out of meeting by Treasury boss

Talks between doctors and government collapsed Friday, January 6 after the medics’ union officials were allegedly chased out of a meeting at Treasury by Cabinet Secretary, Henry Rotich.

According to KMPDU trustee Alex Muturi, the doctors, through their umbrella body, Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), said they had come to Treasury to present their feedback from a meeting with the National Governing Council when they were asked to leave.

The medics’ strike, which is now in its 33rd day, has seen services in public hospitals grounded.

Government representatives, Cabinet Secretaries Henry Rotich (Treasury) and Cleopa Mailu (Health) and the Public Service Commission (PSC) chair, Prof Margaret Kobia, were later holed in a meeting discussing the way forward after the doctors’ union remained adamant that the 2013 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) entered between them and the government must be implemented in full.

On Wednesday, January 5, President Uhuru Kenyatta met with the doctors’ union officials at State House, Mombasa and offered them a 40% pay rise, an offer the medics have since rejected.

In the meeting, the government offered to raise the entry level grade into the public service for doctors to Job Group “M” from Job Group “L”, a grade it terms as higher than the normal entry level for other public servants and recognises doctors’ professional training.

The government further offered to raise the Enhanced Emergency Call allowance to Ksh 66,000 from the current Ksh 30,000 for Job Group L; Ksh 72,000 from Ksh 30,000 for Job Groups M-P; and Ksh 80,000 from Ksh 30,000 for Job Groups Q and above.

A new Doctors’ Risk allowance was on offer at a flat rate of Ksh 10,000 per month.

“The sum total of the government’s offer means that the minimum gross salary for doctors will increase to Ksh 196,989 from the current Ksh 140,244 at full implementation at the current entry Job Group L,” read the government’s statement in part .

“The total impact of the government offer on the exchequer will be an additional expenditure of Ksh 4 billion annually – shared among the nation’s 5,000 doctors.”