PSC report exposes salary crisis in government institutions
A report by the Public Service Commission (PSC) has revealed that 2,078 workers missed out on Sh2.49 billion in salaries, with 2,066 of them not receiving any pay for the entire year.
More than 2,000 government employees went without pay in the financial year ending June 2024, with the bulk of them being university staff affected by financial difficulties in public institutions.
A report by the Public Service Commission (PSC) has revealed that 2,078 workers missed out on Sh2.49 billion in salaries, with 2,066 of them not receiving any pay for the entire year.
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According to the report, public universities had the highest number of affected employees, with 1,544 workers going unpaid. Egerton University was the most affected, with 1,485 of its staff, 96 per cent missing their salaries due to financial constraints.
Other institutions that failed to pay their employees included Ministries and State Departments, which had 223 affected workers, State Corporations and Semi-Autonomous Agencies (273), Statutory Commissions and Authorities (8), and Technical and Vocational Education and Training Institutions (18).
“Institutions gave diverse reasons for failure to pay the respective officers. These included financial constraints at 72 per cent or 1,494 staff, affected officers facing disciplinary action meanwhile stood at 372,” the PSC stated in the report.
Most of the affected workers had their salaries delayed for between seven and twelve months, while 129 employees had gone unpaid for over a year.
Twelve officers owed Sh1.76 million had their salaries delayed for an unspecified period. The unpaid staff accounted for 0.9 per cent of the 231,830 workers in public service.
Several other government agencies also struggled to meet their payroll obligations. Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) had 68 unpaid employees, the Ministry of Defence had 44, and the State Department of Lands and Physical Planning, the National Treasury, and the National Youth Service each had 42 affected staff members.
At Kenya Power, 38 employees were left unpaid, while 25 workers at the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) were also affected.
Public universities have been grappling with financial shortfalls, with Moi University among the hardest hit. In recent years, the institution has seen frequent staff strikes over unpaid salaries and unremitted statutory deductions. In January, the university released Sh113 million in salary arrears to avert another strike.
The PSC has called for the rationalisation of staff in public universities and an audit of State Corporations to address salary delays.
“The PSC will review staff establishments for public universities and rationalise staff to conform with the policy position of 70:30 technique to support ration,” the report stated.
“The Commission will undertake human resource audits in State departments and State corporations affected by non-payment of staff to establish the reasons for non-payment,” it read further.
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