Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) Chief Executive Officer Joash Dache said on Wednesday the directive only applies to those applying to join the service as from July 1 this year/ CFM – OJWANG JOE
KISUMU, Kenya, Jul 3 – Current government employees have been assured of security to their jobs in the wake of a directive by the Public Service Commission (PSC) to hire civil servants on contract.
Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) Chief Executive Officer Joash Dache said on Wednesday the directive only applies to those applying to join the service as from July 1 this year.
Dache said the current employees should not feel threatened promising them that their jobs are intact.
“If anything legally, it is possible to convert from contractual to permanent and pensionable but you cannot convert permanent and pensionable to contract,” he said.
Under the new PSC guidelines, those joining the civil service will be hired for 3-year renewable contracts based on performance.
Dache spoke in Kisumu when he attended the last retreat of membership of 47 County Public Service Boards whose terms ends in August.
Chairperson for the consultative forum for County Public Service Boards Philip Kungu says the retreat is to take stock of their performance for the last six years.
Kungu said the board members are leaving office at a time a proposed county public service board Bill 2019 is before the Senate.
“I think there are significant achievements that the county public service board has made since coming to office, these include aligning county human resource and putting legal and institutional frameworks,” he said.
KLRC’s Dache said the 47 County Public Service Boards will have a uniform Act to guide operations/ FILE – KLRC
Kungu noted the County Government Act has not been sufficient for the running of the board affairs thus the push for a stand-alone County Public Service Board Act.
He announced that the Bill is complete and before the Senate adding it will be ideal once passed for dealing with the issues the outgoing county public service board members have come across during their tenures.
KLRC’s Dache said the 47 County Public Service Boards will have a uniform Act to guide operations.
“What this Bill seeks to do is to repeal the entire Section 7 of the County Government Act and create a new county public service board,” he said.
He announced that one of the outstanding points in the Bill will enable county employees to be transferred to other counties across the country.
“In the proposed Bill what we have done, we have said that cabinet secretary for public service is going to make regulations to authorize inter county transfers in consultation with the forum for county public service board,” he said.
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