Trouble At Posta As Employees Go For Five Months Without Salaries

By Getrude Matayo

The global spread of the Covid-19 pandemic has affected business operations in the country. The State-owned Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) has not paid salaries for its employees since March, highlighting the firm’s cash flow challenges.

Details from the institution’s financial report indicate that the corporation continues to sink into losses, with the effects of Covid-19 sending it further into the red.

The employees have now petitioned the National Assembly through the departmental committee on Information, Communication, and Technology to probe the corporation’s failure to pay salaries.

In the last 10 years, Internet Service providers and the entry of giant telco Safaricom, have drastically cut reliance on Post for the physical delivery of letters.

Posta has also been unable to remit over 1 billion shillings deducted from employees in the past for retirement scheme, forcing Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) to take over its retirement benefits scheme.

Through Wajir East MP Rashid Amin, Posta employees want parliament to recommend the Cabinet Secretary responsible for Information, Communications and Telecommunication initiates a process of rescuing the PCK from its current financial crisis.

“I, the undersigned on the behalf of the employees of the Postal Corporation of Kenya draw the attention of the House that over the past five years, the corporation has consistently posted a deficit in ana increasing trend which led to financial challenges making it difficult to settle staff arrears,” Mr. Amin said.

Mr. Rashid Amin said efforts made by employees to have the corporation address their plight have been unsuccessful.

The employees asked lawmakers to investigate the matter with a view to resolving the issues relating to delays in the payment of salaries. They said pandemic have aggravated the situation with minimal postal activities.

The parastatal has been experiencing cash flow issues following the advent of modes of communication, with the number of letters posted locally in the three months to declining by 19.3 percent to 8.5 million from 10.5 million letters the quarter ended December.