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Government and Policy

Interns to Earn Ksh 25, 000 in Proposed Amendments of the Employment Act

BY Soko Directory Team · July 25, 2019 07:07 am

Interns attached to any company in Kenya will soon be entitled to a monthly allowance of 25,000 shillings if amendments proposed on the Employment Act and Social assistance Act are approved by Parliament.

Every unemployed youth in the country will be entitled to a monthly hardship allowance of 3,000 shillings if the amendment proposal succeeds.

The amendments being introduced by the Member of Parliament (MP) for Saboti and the MP for Kimilili Didmus Barasa come a few months after Samburu West MP Naisula Lesuuda drafted a bill seeking to have interns paid.

Naisula argued that the bill was for the purpose of protecting interns against exploitation most of them faced from employers who used them without any pay.

The unemployed youth are to receive12, 000 shillings from the Government, to cushion them from the harsh economic times, after every four months according to Mr.Amisi who proposes that the Social Assistance Act no.24 of 2014 be amended.

Amisi’s proposal further seeks to amend section 22 of the Principal Act to make provision for the Cabinet Secretary to gazette a hardship allowance

“The unemployed people in Kenya are not provided with unemployment allowance or any social assistance as it is the case in some countries. A big number of unemployed youth are unable to sustain living in urban areas where opportunities are found,” said MP Amisi.

Read Also: Paying Interns Soon to be Mandatory if Proposed Bill is Passed into Law

The most recent UNDP report shows that the number of unemployed youth stands at a worrying 2.6 million despite being qualified.

For the 2.6 million unemployed youth, the government will have to part with 93.6 billion shillings in the first year and is likely to be spending over 100 billion each year after that.

Coming at a time when the Country is choking in debts, paying a hardship allowance to unemployed youth may be a farfetched dream.

Interns

MP Barasa is seeking to amend the Employment Act no.1 of 2017 to enable the provision of the absorption of diploma and graduate interns by public and private sector employees with a standard pay of 25, 000 shillings every month.

“The Bill seeks to provide a minimum wage payable to interns. It also seeks to make provision for a requirement for all employees to file annual internship returns with the director of employment,” the proposed amendment reads.

The Bill further requires that an employer who employs more than fifty employees shall offer an internship to degree and diploma holders with five percent of the total workforce.

The internship program shall be for a period of between 3- 12 months or the duration prescribed by the professional body which regulates the profession in which the intern seeks registration according to the bill.

Conversation on whether or not to pay interns has been floated with the divided opinion being witnessed, what remains, however, is the reality of the harsh economic that makes survival impossible for the youth as basic needs cannot be overlooked.

Read Also: 10 Most Prestigious Internships in 2019

Soko Directory is a Financial and Markets digital portal that tracks brands, listed firms on the NSE, SMEs and trend setters in the markets eco-system. Find us on Facebook: facebook.com/SokoDirectory and on Twitter: twitter.com/SokoDirectory

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