Laikipia Government Fires Doctors to End Strike, Avails Medical Managers to Deliver Health Services

Laikipia County Governor Ndiritu Muriithi has fired 61 doctors who have been on strike for the last three weeks.

Ndiritu Muriithi, who spoke during a press conference at the Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital on June 24, said that hospital administrators would replace the Doctors who had downed their tools.

The Employment and Labor Relations Court had earlier in June suspended the strike by Doctors in Laikipia until a case that had been filed by the County Government would be heard and determined.

“We will be advertising for the vacancies of medical officers but in the meantime, patients will be served by the 24 medical managers in the county, including the Health executive and the chief officer who will be deployed in the two major hospitals in the county,” Governor Muriithi said.

The Doctor’s strike in Laikipia has been ongoing since June 3 with the County Government battling the Doctors in Court over what it has termed as the medics’ plan to paralyze services and development in the County.

The Doctors downed their tools over what they termed as their employer’s failure to implement a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

Laikipia’s County Secretary Karanja Njora has said the County has promoted 49 doctors and recruited eight others in dismissal of the doctors’ demands.

Some of the demands the doctors have presented that have been viewed as outrageous include the demand of arrears that rose from delayed promotions.

“It is very unfortunate that the specialists have chosen this path. They have been participating in an illegal strike,” Governor Muriithi noted while referring to the suspension given to the strike by the labour court.

The striking doctors, now fired, were issued with dismissal letters on Friday before the Governor’s announcement on Monday.

“In that Job Group, they should know that promotions are not automatic and they can only happen when there is a vacancy at that level,” Governor Muriithi said.

The fired doctors were earning an estimated 350, 000 shillings per month and were spread across Laikipia’s four major hospitals which are Nanyuki Teaching and Referral Hospital, Nyahururu County Hospital, Doldol hospital, and Kimanjo hospital.

“We have to promote equity as an organization, but in any case, we do not have the resources to accommodate their wishes,” Governor Muriithi said, terming the demands by the Doctors unsustainable for the county.

In a previous event, Governor Muriithi spoke of Laikipia’s wage bill which, according to the County’s Secretary Mr Njora, stands at 56 percent of 2.6 billion shillings, 1.6 of which goes to the County’s health department.

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