2,500 People Fired As Betin Folds 500 Shops In Kenya

Kenyans continue to lose jobs with each passing day. Companies are closing down, some are leaving Kenya while some are cutting down on their workforce as the business environment continue to become hostile.

In a period of fewer than three months, more than 4,000 jobs have been lost from various sectors further casting a dark cloud over the Jubilee government’s promise of creating jobs for thousands of Kenyans.

On Friday, the giant gaming firm, Betin, announced the folding of its more than 500 shops across the country cutting short jobs for at least 2,500 Kenyans.

The folding of shops by Betin comes a month after the company decided to close down business in Kenya for what it termed as frustrations from the government and unfriendly business environment.

SportPesa, another giant gaming firm fired all 100 percent of its workforce as they exited the Kenyan market following the decision by the government to impose 20 percent Withholding Tax on all stakes placed during a bet.

Other companies that have retrenched employees include:

East African Portland Cement that fired over 1,500 employees

• Telkom Kenya
• Stanbic Bank of Kenya
• East African Breweries Limited
• Sanlam Kenya
• Finlays

In October 10, Air Afrik announced that it was laying off more than 80 percent of its workforce in Kenya, complaining of the cost of running the business due to financial constraints.

The carrier hit major turbulence following the loss of a $20 million plane-leasing contract with the government of South Sudan.

Since the loss of the contract and the court case against Stanbic Bank the company has been reviewing its process; fitting people into the right jobs and in the process, some roles have become redundant.

The government continues to insist that the economy is stable and that people are employed and creating jobs but the reality on the ground tells a tale of sadness, frustrations and depression.