Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi has announced that the government will fully implement the second phase of the civil servants’ Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Speaking to the press on Tuesday, September 3, Muturi confirmed that the Treasury has agreed to provide the necessary funds for these payments, which will be backdated to July.
“The National Treasury has agreed to provide the resources needed to pay civil servants’ salaries according to the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement,” Muturi stated.
All civil servants will receive their backdated salaries by the end of this month. This move follows a recent court action by the Union of Kenya Civil Servants, which aimed to halt the Salary and Remuneration Commission’s (SRC) decision to freeze their members’ pay increases.
The union had also threatened to strike if the pay rise was not implemented by the end of the month.
On September 2, the Union of Kenya Civil Servants issued a seven-day ultimatum, warning of industrial action if the government did not implement the second phase of the CBA by the end of the week. Union Secretary General Tom Odege condemned the SRC’s decision to suspend the CBA’s implementation. He described the suspension as illegal and stressed that the finalized terms of the agreement should be honored.
The union clarified that the first phase of the Agreement, signed on September 11, 2023, covered the period from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, while the second phase was intended to cover July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025.
According to Odege’s affidavit, the CBA applies to all civil servants within job groups CSG 17 to CSG 8 of the national government, including those deployed at both the national and county government levels. The agreement aimed to ensure annual salary increments as outlined for the respective grades.
Despite this, the SRC issued a circular freezing salary reviews for all public officers for FY2024-25 until further notice.
