The Federation of Kenyan Employers Companies (FKE), chaired by Dr. Habil Olaka, opposed a proposed bill that would prohibit companies from contacting their employees after they have checked out of their workplaces.
Olaka detailed his reasons for opposing the legislation, which he described as extreme and ignorant of working reality.
According to Olaka, the change would make it harder for employers to manage their businesses and would strain the employer-worker relationship.
“The proposed amendment introduces radical and stringent measures that will curtail the employer’s prerogatives to manage enterprises and pose challenges to industrial relations in Kenya,” Olaka explained.
“These proposed changes contradict the essence of freedom as well as the realities of the labor market,” he continued.
The FKE president went on to say that employers’ administrative powers should not be hampered by legislation, which is what the bill would do if it passed.
Additionally, Olaka criticized the law, claiming that it would develop a culture of indiscipline and discord in the workplace since it establishes two centers of management control.
“The ILO has provided instruments that have proven to be effective in managing working hours and overtime pay,” he said.
The president said that the draft rule would require companies to limit their workers’ phone usage outside of work hours, something FKE firmly opposed.
