A report tabled in Parliament on Wednesday 26th February 2025 has revealed crisis hitting public service employees.
The report shows some 47,300 government employees take home less than a third of their pay, which is below the limit set in law.
This has been exacerbated by the increased payslip deductions. Provident fund, Union deductions, NSSF, SHIF and Housing levy have all led to shrinking payslip which mostly are already loaded with loans.
Nominated Senator Beatrice Ogolla has called for urgent intervention to address the growing crisis of public servants’ salaries falling below the legally mandated one-third basic salary threshold.
Speaking in the Senate under Standing Order 53(1), Ogolla sought a detailed statement from the Standing Committee on Labour and Social Welfare, highlighting the severe financial strain on workers due to recent tax changes and mandatory deductions.
“Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is a growing and alarming trend where public servants are receiving salaries that violate the one-third basic salary rule as outlined in the Human Resource Policies and Procedure Manual,” Ogolla stated.
“This is exacerbated by recent tax changes, including the 1.5% deduction for affordable housing and the 2.75% deduction for the Social Health Insurance Fund, which have pushed many workers below the legal threshold.”
Ogolla emphasized the dire consequences of these deductions.
“These contributions, while aimed at social welfare, are forcing public servants to take home less than one-third of their basic pay, plunging many into financial distress and risking their classification as the ‘working poor,’” she warned.
“This is a clear violation of Section C.1(3) of the 2016 HR Manual, which mandates that no employee should commit more than two-thirds of their basic pay.”
The Senator called for immediate action to safeguard workers’ financial and psychological well-being.
“What measures are the Ministries of Labour and Public Service taking to protect public servants from these adverse effects?” she questioned.
“We need clear plans to cushion teachers, police officers, and all government employees from disciplinary actions arising from these violations and to review existing policies to align them with the new tax realities.”