Healthcare workers in Migori County have accused St. Akidiva Memorial Hospital of subjecting staff to exploitative labor conditions, citing months of unpaid wages, arbitrary dismissals, and a pattern of deliberate frustration by the hospital’s management.
According to testimonies from current and former staff, employees are often required to work for two months without pay, only to receive half a month’s salary, with arrears accumulating indefinitely.
When staff demand their rightful compensation, they allege that the management responds by dismissing them without notice and hiring replacements, a cycle that has persisted for months.
Recent developments have aggravated the situation, with clinical officers and nurses who had worked for extended periods without pay reportedly being handed meagre amounts under an ultimatum of “take it or leave.”
Workers say this tactic is designed to silence complaints while keeping the hospital operations running at the expense of already overburdened and underpaid staff.
Insiders note that many of those affected are parents and sole breadwinners who have been left unable to meet their basic needs, pay rent, or provide for their families, describing the situation as both humiliating and unjust.
The allegations have sparked outrage within Migori town, with calls for intervention from labour rights groups and government authorities to investigate St. Akidiva Memorial Hospital and hold its management accountable for what has been described as systematic exploitation of healthcare professionals.
“Good evening Nyakundi. Kindly hide my identity. I would like you to help me expose the injustices some of these private hospitals do to their employees. There is this particular hospital in Migori town called St. Akidiva. The management of this hospital has been frustrating the healthcare givers for a long time. They employ you, you work for a whole two months without pay, only to be paid half salary for one month. They end up accumulating arrears and when they sense that they will not be able to pay, they fire the employees without any notice for new ones. Of recent, they decided to pay COs and nurses who have worked for two months without pay KSh 5000, with this attitude of ‘mchukue hiyo ama mtoke.’ It hurts that some of these people being frustrated are parents, with needs and bills to pay. Kindly help me shout out against such injustices. Thank you.”
