This archive report was first published on 25 June 2020.
On June 25, 2020, Kenyan employees faced an onslaught of job cuts, pay reductions, and employee restructurings due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Business Talk highlighted the dismal outlook on employee motivation for firms that lower staff salaries without appropriate cause.
Examples of egregious coronavirus pay cut scenarios include non-uniform salary and payment reductions across an organisation, executives receiving the smallest percentage pay cut or none at all, and disproportionately reducing salaries on the most vulnerable workers.
Staff restructuring and changing reporting lines to settle long-held grudges, and cutting more staff and salaries than pandemic revenue reductions justify, are also common practices.
Organisations can assess their fairness and justice during the pandemic by responding to six statements and giving corresponding point values.
Respondents who score 24 or higher are in a fair and just firm, while those between 18 and 24 are mediocre, and those below 18 are in a dismal establishment with damage to employee morale, motivation, and satisfaction.
A prestigious study by Graham Dietz and Nicole Gillespie shows that companies can mitigate distrust by revising decision-making authority and accountability, imposing checks and balances, and offering coaching and mentoring to employees.
