Broke Rongo University Fires Over 100 Workers To Avoid Collapse
By MN Reporter
Broke Rongo University has been forced to fire over 100 workers to avoid closure and tame runaway wage bill.
Speaking to the press in his office, the university Vice Chancellor Professor Samuel Gudu said the institution’s council arrived at the decision after a meeting.
“Money and funding from the government and other sources is not enough to sustain the institution, this is not only in Rongo but across other universities in the country,” Gudu said.
Those affected are staff 64 and 43 casual labourers with the university staff which was at 418 before the redundancies expected to come down to 354.
“This reduction may not be so much significant, but it is necessary to ensure we stay afloat and not shut down this institution because we can’t support the payroll,” Gudu said.
The university was having an annual payroll of Sh756m, and the redundancy will clear off Sh45million from this.
Across the country, public universities have been grappling with fund crunch as government has reduced funding, and support funds on privately sponsored students being cut off with a huge bloated payroll caused by a Collective Bargaining Agreement between them and workers.
“While the agreement said we had to increase salaries, government did not release more fund to reflect the same,” Gudu said.
Those affected will be paid their annuity.
The institution started as Moi Institute of Technology in 1970s by the local community as a for technical training before Moi University took it as a satellite institution in 2007 and four years later it came up as Rongo University College.
On October 7, 2016 former President Uhuru Kenyatta gave the university a charter.
“When we took over from former institute we took in over a hundred staffs who we absorbed hoping the institution will be sustainable, we also employed more,” Gudu said.
The Public Service Commission in an audit of the university staff recommended that 137 were excess and should be declared redundant.
