Laikipia county government has set aside Sh190 million to pay 172 employees, who have been declared redundant in a staff rationalisation programme.
In a statement released by acting County Secretary Karanja Njora on Monday, the county said the rationalisation programme was aimed at reducing a ballooning wage bill and enhancing service delivery.
Mr Njora explained that currently the wage bill stood at 58.8 per cent of the county budget, higher than the legally recommended 35 per cent.
Njora said the decision was informed by a staff audit carried out by the County Public Service Board between June 24 and August 17 2019.
The audit, according to Njora, revealed that some employees earned salaries that were not commensurate with the work they delivered.
“To this effect, the board has identified 176 employees whose positions will be redundant,” read the statement.
“Employees occupying these positions are not gainfully engaged. The board also engaged union officials to cultivate a mutual understanding of the separation process.”
Njora stressed that the affected workers would be counseled and given a send-off package to help sustain them for a while. They were issued with redundancy notices on January 8.
The audit was also meant to find out whether employees’ skills matched their job specifications.
“A number of employees were found to be wrongfully placed. The audit also revealed that some employees are not gainfully engaged, meaning that they earn a salary but there is no way of justifying what they do,” Njora said.
The county government began reforms in its county public service two years ago with the aim of improving service delivery.
The reforms introduced a performance management system where all employees have to prepare work plans and fill in time-sheets.
It also provided for a platform where employees who performed well were rewarded.
Each will receive about half their salary for the years they have served.
