Kenya unveils pay cut for state officials

Kenya on Monday announced a drastic salary cut for all cadres of
state employees in a bid to tame a ballooning wage bill that is to
blame for the sluggish economic growth.

Sarah Serem, Chairperson of Salaries and Remuneration Commission
(SRC), said the pay cut for state officials will be accompanied by
abolition of mileage and sitting allowances to cushion the Kenyan
tax payers from inflationary pressures.

“The revised monthly salary for state employees factors critical
issues like cost of living and the state of our economy. It
promotes the constitutional spirit of competitive remuneration and
will enhance productivity among state officers,” Serem told
journalists in Nairobi.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto will
be affected by the proposed salary cut that will be implemented
from September to 2022.

According to the revised salary structure, Kenyatta will earn
10,400 U.S. dollars per month, down from 10,600 dollars, while his
deputy will be earning 10,200 dollars, down from 10,400
dollars.

The pay cut will also affect cabinet secretaries, senior civil
servants like lawmakers, county executives and ward representatives
whose hefty perks had reportedly exerted huge pressure on public
finances.

Serem revealed that cabinet secretaries who are mostly hired
from the private sector will take home a monthly pay of 9,025
dollars down from 10,500 dollars while lawmakers will earn 6,020
dollars down from 7,010 dollars.

The salaries boss announced that mileage and sitting allowances
for senior officials and lawmakers will be scrapped in a bid to
slash the public wage bill by 35 percent and save the Kenyan
exchequer 800 million dollars annually.

She added that Kenya has borrowed global best practices in its
bid to tame the skyrocketing wage bill that has undermined economic
growth and investments in poverty alleviation projects.

“We should strive towards being a producing country as opposed
to being a consuming one,” Serem remarked, adding that the
government will critically examine the competence of civil servants
before awarding them a salary hike.

Kenya on Monday announced a drastic salary cut for all cadres of
state employees in a bid to tame a ballooning wage bill that is to
blame for the sluggish economic growth.

Sarah Serem, Chairperson of Salaries and Remuneration Commission
(SRC), said the pay cut for state officials will be accompanied by
abolition of mileage and sitting allowances to cushion the Kenyan
tax payers from inflationary pressures.

“The revised monthly salary for state employees factors critical
issues like cost of living and the state of our economy. It
promotes the constitutional spirit of competitive remuneration and
will enhance productivity among state officers,” Serem told
journalists in Nairobi.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto will
be affected by the proposed salary cut that will be implemented
from September to 2022.

According to the revised salary structure, Kenyatta will earn
10,400 U.S. dollars per month, down from 10,600 dollars, while his
deputy will be earning 10,200 dollars, down from 10,400
dollars.

The pay cut will also affect cabinet secretaries, senior civil
servants like lawmakers, county executives and ward representatives
whose hefty perks had reportedly exerted huge pressure on public
finances.

Serem revealed that cabinet secretaries who are mostly hired
from the private sector will take home a monthly pay of 9,025
dollars down from 10,500 dollars while lawmakers will earn 6,020
dollars down from 7,010 dollars.

The salaries boss announced that mileage and sitting allowances
for senior officials and lawmakers will be scrapped in a bid to
slash the public wage bill by 35 percent and save the Kenyan
exchequer 800 million dollars annually.

She added that Kenya has borrowed global best practices in its
bid to tame the skyrocketing wage bill that has undermined economic
growth and investments in poverty alleviation projects.

“We should strive towards being a producing country as opposed
to being a consuming one,” Serem remarked, adding that the
government will critically examine the competence of civil servants
before awarding them a salary hike.