A fresh round of talks between the Council of Governors and striking nurses could offer a path towards ending the nationwide health workers’ strike, but the two sides still face difficult questions over the implementation of long-standing agreements.
Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives (KNUNM) Secretary-General Seth Panyako said nurses were prepared to negotiate and make concessions if governors were equally willing to compromise.
Panyako spoke as the Council of Governors prepared to meet union representatives on Wednesday, September 9, amid growing pressure to end an industrial action that has disrupted public health services for more than a month.
“When you sit at the table and negotiate, it is what we call give and take,” Panyako said.
The strike began on July 29 and has affected public health facilities across the country. The union says unresolved issues include the 2017 return-to-work formula, collective bargaining agreements, career progression and the employment terms of Universal Health Coverage workers.
Why the 2017 agreement remains central
For the nurses, the biggest obstacle is the implementation of commitments contained in the return-to-work agreement reached in 2017.
Panyako said the union could consider implementing some aspects of the agreement in phases, rather than demanding that every outstanding commitment be fulfilled at once.
“It can be implemented in phases because when you even look at that agreement, it is already in three phases,” he said.
The 2017 agreement ended a five-month nurses’ strike after the union and the Council of Governors reached a deal covering improvements to nurses’ terms and conditions.
Nearly nine years later, the union maintains that important provisions remain unresolved. Panyako has previously said nurses will not return to work simply on the basis of promises, insisting that commitments must be backed by implementable agreements.
Panyako wants equal treatment for nurses
Another major point of contention is the difference in how employment agreements have been implemented in national and county health institutions.
Panyako argued that nurses employed by counties should not be treated differently from those working in national referral hospitals and other state institutions.
“The only problem we have is county governments, and we don’t know whether the county employees are children of a lesser God and those in government are the true Kenyans,” he said.
He cited institutions such as Kenyatta National Hospital and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, saying some national institutions had moved further in implementing agreements affecting health workers.
Why the talks matter now
The negotiations come after nurses held demonstrations in Nairobi on Tuesday to mark the 40th day of the strike, increasing pressure on governors to find a solution.
The dispute has also begun affecting other health workers. Doctors have threatened to launch their own industrial action, citing increased workloads caused by the nurses’ absence and giving the government a seven-day ultimatum to resolve the crisis.
The Council of Governors, meanwhile, has called for dialogue while warning that some of the nurses’ demands have major financial implications for county governments.
For patients, the stakes are high. A prolonged dispute could further strain public hospitals, making a negotiated settlement increasingly urgent.
The latest talks therefore represent more than another meeting between governors and the union. They could determine whether the nearly six-week dispute moves towards a phased settlement or enters another prolonged confrontation over agreements that nurses say have remained unfulfilled for years.
