The Kenya National Union of Nurses (Knun) secured a court injunction to block the government's plan to transition civil servants to contract employment, citing risks to job stability and fiscal management. The order, issued by Justice Byram Ongaya on July 11, 2019, halted implementation of performance-based contracts set to begin July 1, 2019, and required all parties to maintain the status quo pending further judicial review.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) argued that contract hiring would reduce the bloated public sector workforce and improve efficiency, claiming permanent employees lacked motivation due to job security. PSC chairperson Stephen Kirogo stated the policy aimed to increase service effectiveness and trim the growing wage bill, referencing the 2017 return-to-work formula that had previously triggered nurse strikes over unmet allowance demands.
Knun, representing nurses across government institutions, sought conservatory orders to suspend the contract initiative, which would replace 66,000 permanent positions with 33,000 contracted roles. The court ordered parties to file responses by July 24, 2019, while noting the policy's potential impact on 2017 labor agreement commitments.
