Kenya Power workers top list of public employees taking most emergency leave days
The electricity distributor defended the numbers, attributing them to its large workforce of approximately 10,500 employees.
A new report by the Public Service Commission (PSC) has revealed that Kenya Power employees took the highest number of emergency leave days among public servants last year, raising concerns over potential abuse of the provision, which allows employees time off to address unforeseen circumstances.
The PSC report indicates that out of the 27,026 emergency leaves granted to public servants in the year ending June 2024, Kenya Power accounted for 99.3 per cent, translating to 26,837 instances.
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Despite this high figure, the electricity distributor defended the numbers, attributing them to its large workforce of approximately 10,500 employees.
"Employees are entitled to 30 days of leave every year. As emergencies are unplanned, it's difficult for employees to schedule emergency leave. However, emergency leave days are recovered from the total allowable annual leave days," Kenya Power said in response to the report.
The report assessed public institutions that authorised emergency leave, even as it pointed out that the provision is not anchored in law.
"It was established that 27,026 officers were granted emergency leave. 27,012 officers from state corporations and SAGAs (semi-autonomous government agencies) and 14 from MDAs (ministries, departments, and agencies) took the leave," the PSC said.
St. John’s leave
Kenya Power emerged as the leading institution in granting emergency leave, followed by the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and the State Department for Foreign Affairs, which recorded 175 and 14 emergency leave instances, respectively. KPA referred to the provision as "St. John’s leave".
The PSC expressed concern over the absence of legislation governing emergency leave and called on institutions that issued such leaves to clarify their basis.
"There seems to be no existing legislation for this leave. It might be possible that the three institutions were referring to compassionate or sick leave. All public institutions which granted emergency leave should explain the circumstances under which the leave was granted," reads the report.
Kenya Power justified the practice, stating that emergency leave is granted to employees facing urgent personal matters, such as the sudden illness or death of a close relative. The company further explained that these leave days are deducted from an employee's annual leave entitlement.
"Ideally, everybody is prone to an emergency that may require them to take leave from work. Assuming all employees experience three such situations yearly, this translates into 31,500 instances of emergency leave across the workforce. Therefore, the 26,837 instances of emergency leave as quoted in the PSC report that you shared is within range," the company said.
However, the PSC report flagged the utility company for failing to provide details on whether authorised officers granted approval for 25,361 emergency leaves — representing 94.5 per cent of all cases recorded at the firm during the year.
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