Cotu secretary General Fracis Atwoli. Photo/courtesy
Tea plantation workers in Kericho, Sotik and Nandi might proceed to strike if the 2014-2015 and 2016-2017 collective bargaining agreements for workers are not signed soon.
Addressing media in Nakuru on Tuesday, COTU secretary general Francis Atwoli called on tea multinationals in Kericho, Sotik and Nandi to implement agreement or else they proceed on strike.
Atwoli, who was accompanied by national officials of the Kenya Plantation and Agricultural Workers Union, KPAWU, said there is an existing court order compelling the Labor commissioner to convene a meeting to discuss the two CBAs.
“The labor commissioner was to convene a meeting by this week and failure to do so will lead to a nationwide strike of all workers in tea plantation and I will lead it myself in all tea plantations without any assistance from anyone,” he said.
According to Atwoli, the multinationals only implemented 30% of the 2014-2015 CBA and then move to the court of appeal to annul the remaining 15%.
He added that the union will further move to push the multinationals to withdraw mechanization - an endeavor he said will involve governors from the respective counties.
This even as he revealed that Kericho governor Prof. Paul Chepkwony has already declared that multinationals that fail to withdraw mechanization will be denied trade licenses.