The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) has issued a 30 days ultimatum to the government to either resolve internship wages or call a countrywide demonstration.
Through a statement, KMPDU Secretary General Dr. Davji Atella noted that as a union they will not accept any calls to reduce the salaries of interns.
Atella continued by accusing the government of dishonesty and that they should work on ensuring that the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed by both parties is honoured.
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“The minister was saying that they can’t afford to pay interns this year because of the USAID freeze by U.S President Donald Trump. If Trump is putting the U.S first, the government needs to put Kenyans first.
If the wages are to be reduced or changed, it should not start with intern doctors; it should be for all, and should start with the presidency and the ministers. That’s why we’re saying we will not have any discussion about reducing the wages, we will only have a discussion on when to post the interns and where to post them.” he said
KMPDU and the Ministry of Health were at first locked between a Ksh 70,000 salary proposal from the Ministry and Ksh 206,000 from the Union. The union is sticking to the 2017 CBA which concurred with their request.
