Death of unpaid health worker exposes crisis among UHC staff
The unions under the Health Sector Caucus, said at least 97 Global Fund staff, mostly clinical and laboratory officers, have gone nearly a year without salaries despite promises of absorption into the public system.
Health unions have accused the Ministry of Health of negligence after a female health worker took her own life following 11 months without pay, a tragedy they say reveals the deep emotional and financial distress faced by thousands of Universal Health Coverage workers.
The unions, speaking on Wednesday under the Health Sector Caucus, said at least 97 Global Fund staff, mostly clinical and laboratory officers, have gone nearly a year without salaries despite promises of absorption into the public system.
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“One, a lady from Nyeri, took her life due to stress. This is a matter of life and death,” said Peterson Wachira, chairperson of the Health Sector Caucus and the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers.
They warned that continued delays, broken promises and shifting responsibility between ministries and counties are pushing health workers to the brink.
Wachira said 8,551 UHC workers hired in 2020 remain on contract years later, with no job security or path to permanent employment.
“Twice the government has promised to convert these workers to permanent and pensionable, and twice it has broken that promise,” Wachira said.
He criticised the Ministry of Health for abandoning the workers it hired and instead pushing them to county governments without resolving key issues such as gratuity, contract confirmation and job transition.
“They cannot be tossed between the Ministry of Health, Council of Governors and Parliament endlessly. It is the ministry that recruited and pays them, it must take responsibility,” he added.
Union officials said the prolonged uncertainty and lack of income have taken a heavy toll, especially on workers who had hoped for stability after serving through the pandemic under UHC.
They also expressed anger at Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, accusing him of failing to fulfil promises made to health staff after taking office.
“When Duale came in, we believed he would prioritise our needs,” said Pius Nyakundi, Secretary General of the Kenya National Union of Medical Laboratory Officers. “But he has not kept his word and is now following the same path as his predecessors.”
Nyakundi criticised Duale’s request for unions to lobby Parliament for more health funding, saying that responsibility lies with the ministry and the Treasury.
“It is not the job of unions to push Parliament for allocations. That is the role of the ministry and Treasury,” he said.
The unions also condemned the police for using force against peaceful protesters on Tuesday. At least four health workers were injured, including a woman hit by a teargas canister.
“The police brutality was unjustified. These are peaceful healthcare workers exercising their right to picket under Article 37. Why respond with violence?” said Odipo Nicholas, chair of the Kenya National Union of Medical Laboratory Officers.
The union leaders warned that unless urgent action is taken, more health workers could be driven to desperation, further hurting the delivery of essential health services.
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