Officials from the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) have continued piling pressure on the Nakuru County government to absorb nurses initially employed under the Economic Stimulus programme (ESP).
Healthcare givers secretary Cyprine Odera said the county is yet to honour the promise it made to the health personnel but revealed that they were planning to hold a meeting with county officials on Wednesday morning to discuss the issue.
“The county is dragging its feet in absorbing the healthcare givers as agreed. We had agreed that the process was to be completed by April 15, but this has not been the case,” said Ms Odera.
She added: “Already, healthcare givers have put their demands on the table and we have a number of letters that we have written to the county government officers but little was being done to solve this issue.
She noted that the ESP workers, who were employed to avert a health crisis in hospitals in 2011, had been promised they would be made permanent and pensionable at the end of their contracts.
Ms Odera revealed that out of a total of 185 nurses to be absorbed, only 68 nurses have been permanently hired, leaving the fate of 117 nurses undetermined.
She, however, clarified that the nurses were not yet on strike or go-slow and called on them to attend to their duties as union officials engaged county administration.
Health workers have in the past fielded to the county government a number of issues, including promotions of health staff to various cadres, alleged meddling of their affairs by Members of the county assembly and delayed salaries.
Although health services were among the functions that were devolved, health workers have, in the past, expressed their unwillingness to work under county governments, leading to major crises in public hospitals.