For many low-income workers, payday is the difference between stability and crisis. Rent, food, transport, school fees, and household bills all depend on the salary an employee receives at the end of the month. When salaries are delayed, reduced without explanation, or paid in amounts employees cannot understand, the consequences can be devastating.

The retail sector is built on the labour of cashiers, shelf attendants, cleaners, loaders, security personnel, and other frontline workers who spend long hours ensuring customers are served and businesses remain operational. Despite their contribution, complaints about delayed salaries, unexplained deductions, and poor communication continue to emerge from various workplaces across the country.

What frustrates workers most is not always the low pay itself. It is the feeling of being kept in the dark. Employees can tolerate many challenges when there is honesty and transparency. But when salaries arrive short and management cannot explain where the money went, trust quickly disappears.

Hello Nyakundi,

Kindly hide my identity.

I work at Muhindi Mweusi Supermarket, specifically at the Kariobangi South branch, and I would like to raise concerns about how employees are being treated.

Our salary is already very low, around KSh11,000 per month, yet even that amount is not guaranteed.

Imagine working the entire month, waiting until around the 15th of the following month to be paid, only to receive KSh1,700 instead of your full salary.

That is exactly what happened to me.

I was shocked because nobody had informed me of any deductions, disciplinary action, or reason why such a huge amount would be missing from my pay.

When I tried seeking answers, I found myself being taken in circles.

You call HR and instead of receiving a clear explanation, you are left even more confused than before.

Nobody seems willing to tell employees exactly what happened to their money.

The problem is that workers have responsibilities.

Landlords do not wait because your salary was delayed.

Children do not stop eating because payroll has a problem.

Transport costs remain the same whether you have been paid or not.

Many employees are struggling silently because they fear speaking out.

People are worried about losing their jobs if they question management too much.

But the reality is that workers are suffering.

How do you survive on KSh11,000 in Nairobi?

And how do you survive when even that KSh11,000 suddenly becomes KSh1,700 without a proper explanation?

If there are deductions, let them be explained.

If there are payroll errors, let them be corrected.

If there are legitimate reasons, employees deserve to know.

What workers want is not special treatment.

We simply want transparency, accountability, and respect.

No employee should work an entire month and then be left guessing where their salary went.

Concerned Employee,

Muhindi Mweusi Supermarket, Kariobangi South Branch.