Employees of Kentons Limited, a Kisumu-based company operating as a wholesaler and distributor of pharmaceutical products across Kenya, have formally raised fresh allegations of persistent and severe labour violations, claiming that over a prolonged period they have been subjected to excessive working hours without proper remuneration for overtime, arbitrary and unexplained deductions from their salaries, and repeated instances of intimidation, verbal abuse, and public humiliation by the company directors.
The workforce reports that any attempts to question management decisions or request lawful entitlements result in threats of termination, creating an environment of pervasive fear and professional insecurity that affects staff both personally and professionally.
Efforts to obtain intervention from the Kisumu Labour Office have reportedly been met with inaction and corruption, leaving employees without lawful recourse.
As a result, the employees indicate that they are preparing coordinated, peaceful measures to expose the alleged misconduct, presenting comprehensive evidence such as payroll records, documented threats, and witness testimonies to regulatory authorities, human rights organizations, media platforms, and trade unions.
The employees further state that their actions will remain strictly nonviolent while maintaining their determination to secure restitution, protection of their rights, and enforcement of lawful labour standards, warning that continued neglect of these grievances by both management and regulatory bodies will compel them to bring the matter to national and international advocacy channels to achieve full transparency and redress.
Below is what the employees of Kentons Limited have formally communicated regarding the labour violations.
“Greetings Cyprian. We are workers from Kentons Pharmaceuticals writing with broken hearts. For years we have been crying inside, carrying pain to work every morning, pretending everything is okay. It is not okay. What is happening here is wrong, damaging, and cruel. Every day we work from morning until late and still we get nothing for the extra hours. They make unfair deductions and when we ask, we are shouted at, threatened, and told to leave if we do not like it. The directors are bitter and mean, they insult people, embarrass us in front of others, and treat us like we are nothing. They act like they enjoy breaking our spirits. We have families. We have children. We come to work tired, sometimes sick, and we give everything because we must survive. In return we get humiliation, threats, and insecurity. People have been fired for asking reasonable questions. People are scared to speak because the next day they could be gone. We tried to use the Kisumu Labour Office. We hoped for protection. But that office has turned its back on us. It is full of corruption, they take bribes, look away, and leave us with no help. We have reports, complaints, and nothing changes. We have begged for years and been ignored. This pain has built up. The people here are at the breaking point. We are tired of being used, tired of being insulted, tired of being treated like less-than-human. We will not keep suffering in silence while the people who have power live comfortably. If nothing changes, we will act together, peacefully but without fear. We will expose everything: names, dates, pay slips, unfair deductions, witnesses. We will tell our stories to the media, to human rights groups, to unions, and to anyone who will listen. We will take our case higher than Kisumu if we must. They will no longer be able to hide behind silence and corruption. Let it be clear: WE ARE DONE WAITING. WE WILL FORCE ACCOUNTABILITY. They will have no place to hide their faces once the truth is out. This will not be easy for them. We will not harm anyone, but we will not be ignored either. The change will start with us, and it will be loud.”
