This archive report was first published on 3 August 2020.
On August 3, 2020, the Homa Bay health sector was thrown into chaos as medical workers went on strike over unpaid salaries and unfavorable working conditions amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.
The strike, which began after the workers' notice to the Governor Cyprian Awiti's administration expired on July 30, 2020, was a culmination of months of unpaid salaries and poor working conditions.
The medical workers, including doctors, nurses, clinical officers, laboratory technicians, pharmacists, and dentists, demanded timely payment of their salaries for June and July, as well as better working environments to combat the deadly virus.
They also sought the county's assistance in cushioning them from suffering through timely payment of statutory deductions to the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) and provision of enough personal protective equipment (PPEs).
Kevin Osuri, the Nyanza chair of the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU), declared the strike legal, citing the county's failure to fulfill its promise of timely salary payments for the past nine months.
Dr. Osuri called on the Ethics and Anti-Corruption (EACC) and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to investigate the salary delays, which he claimed were approved in the last financial year's budget.
County Health executive Richard Muga attributed the delays to the late disbursement of funds from the national government to the county.
