Salary review freeze set to be lifted

The freeze on salary reviews for government workers is set to be lifted.

This follows moves to form a team that will pick a top official of an agency to fix remuneration.

Public Service permanent secretary Titus Ndambuki on Monday named the organisations to send a representative to the team that will select the chairman of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.

Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura stopped any salary reviews for civil servants, teachers and parastatal workers until the commission was formed in line with the new Constitution.

Selection of chairperson

But on Monday, Mr Ndambuki, who is also the secretary to the selection panel, said the Office of the President and that of the Prime Minister would each send representatives to the team that will pick the commission’s chairman.

Also to be represented will be the office of the Attorney-General, the Association of Professional Societies of East Africa and the Central Organisation of Trade Unions.

Mr Ndambuki could neither state the number of members who would be selected from each of the offices nor their names.

In a statement, Mr Ndambuki said President Kibaki had approved the representations of membership.

“The President has approved the panel to process the selection of chairperson of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission,” Mr Ndambuki said.

But later, public relations officer Kennedy Buhere said the named agencies “may pick any of their most senior officials”.

Parliament recently passed the Salaries and Remuneration Commission Bill, which establishes the organisation that will set and review salaries and remuneration of all public officers.

The order issued by Mr Muthaura in May affected reviews of salaries and allowances for more than 400,000 public servants.

Mr Muthaura also ruled that all salaries and allowances determined after August 27, 2010, when the new Constitution was effected, were not to be honoured.

He said salary reviews would only resume after the formation of the Salaries and Remuneration Commission in line with the new Constitution.

Trade unions protested against the action, saying it amounted to violation of the constitutional right of workers to negotiate terms.

But with the formation of the commission, it means that the negotiations would be opened.

Lecturers of public universities were expecting new salaries after the expiry of their Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Civil servants have also been fighting for a salary increase.