COTU rejects role in committee supervising sugar factory layoffs
In a letter dated October 3, 2025, addressed to Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua, Cotu Secretary-General Francis Atwoli said the union would not participate in discussions centred on laying off employees.
The Central Organisation of Trade Unions -Kenya (COTU) has declined to take part in a government-initiated committee formed to supervise the planned redundancy of all workers in recently privatised sugar factories.
The union has questioned why the Labour Ministry, whose core responsibility is to create employment, is spearheading a process aimed at sending thousands of workers home.
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In a letter dated October 3, 2025, addressed to Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua, COTU Secretary-General Francis Atwoli said the union would not participate in discussions centred on laying off employees.
“COTU (K), therefore, respectfully declines to participate in the proposed meeting on redundancy, and instead calls for urgent consultations on strategies to expand employment opportunities in line with the ministry’s founding mission,” he stated.
The planned mass layoff follows the government’s move to lease four state-owned sugar companies to private investors.
The investors have been given the green light to dismiss all current employees as part of the transfer process.
Kipronoh Ronoh, Principal Secretary in the State Department for Agriculture, instructed the managing directors of the factories to issue written redundancy notices to every employee.
The directive requires the notices to explain the reasons for termination, outline each employee’s entitlements, and be copied to county labour officers. The directive is expected to affect more than 5,000 workers.
Those who wish to stay on under the new investors will have to reapply for their positions.
The Labour Ministry subsequently invited COTU to appoint at least one official to a tripartite committee comprising government representatives, employers, and employees.
The team’s role is to review the planned redundancies, offer legal and policy guidance, and ensure the process complies with existing labour laws and collective agreements.
It is also expected to provide direction on fair labour practices, dispute prevention, lawful termination procedures, and adherence to international standards, including ILO Convention No. 158.
“The purpose of the letter is to request that you nominate at least one officer to the tripartite committee and communicate the same to the Labour Commissioner… on or before October 6, 2025,” wrote L.K. Bii on behalf of the Labour Commissioner.
Atwoli dismissed the invitation, saying COTU would not sit in a forum chaired by the Labour Ministry to plan how to lay off workers.
“As COTU (K), we shall only take part in a meeting to discuss how to bake a bigger cake to create more employment opportunities,” he said.
He criticised the ministry for holding redundancy talks at a time when many Kenyans are struggling to find jobs.
“It is deeply concerning that the ministry, whose central mandate is employment creation, would convene a meeting to discuss redundancy at a time when the unemployment crisis in our country is acute,” he added, pointing out that the sugar industry holds great potential for creating more jobs if properly supported.
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