By Abdimalik Hajir - Reporter
Kenya, 26 May 2026 - Operations at Garissa Referral Hospital remained paralyzed on Tuesday as healthcare workers’ protest entered its second day.
The workers are demanding the fulfillment of long-outstanding grievances.
On Monday, union officials and healthcare workers gathered at the facility before marching to the county headquarters.
They accused the county government of failing to honour the return-to-work formula agreed upon in 2025.
In 2025, the healthcare workers boycotted work after which they signed a return-to-work formula.
However , according to Diriye Ismail, the Garissa branch secretary general for Kenya National Union of Nurses, the authority has not implemented all outstanding grievances they signed for.
Diriye, who is also chair for Garissa County healthcare workers ,said since then they had made many a lot of efforts to engage the county by writing letters but have been in vain, they had no any other option.
“Our outstanding grievances that have not been resolved include lack of promotion. They did promote but were so unfair that we did not agree to it,” said Diriye.
The Healthcare workers also noted that the county Government does not remit statutory deduction including Social Health Authority (SHA) exposing the healthcare workers to great risk.
“We have been offering service that ourselves and that of our families do not receive, the county has not been remitting this deduction but it shows on our pay slips that they paid,” he added.
The nurses claimed that the county government gave them Preterm Insurance when they staged protest but only worked for weeks after the strike and the workers have been working without insurance cover.
"We also have issues with SHA. We are offering services that we are not getting the same services ourselves together with our families. It is not even remitted. Medical cover was updated when we had strike but only worked for one week," he said.
More from Kenya
The deductions, they said include money meant for Lap Funds, a pension body that they claimed might have effects during their retirement and also loans from different companies which are not submitted.
Other deductions that have been affected include NSSF, Saccos, and Insurance providers.
“We also have an issue of uniform and leave allowance. The county has said they are going to give us leave and uniform allowance but up to date, nothing has happened,” said the nurse's secretary general.
According to the healthcare union, the county has also not fulfilled the promise to absorb the contracted healthcare workers.
They noted that the county has literally not honoured anything they promised during their work boycott in 2025.
Anthony Kilonzo, an official at the Kenya Environmental Health and Public Health Practitioners Union (KEHPHPU), said its not the wish of the healthcare workers to be on the streets but have been forced by the county’s inability to honour what they have promised.
Kilonzo also noted that the county has not implemented the Salary and Renumeration Commission (SRC) approved structure. This, he said, have resulted in salary disparity and financial hardship among health workers.
The healthcare workers who are on strike include Nurses and members of professional bodies such as the Kenya National Union of Medical Laboratory Officers (KNUMLO), The Kenya Environmental Health and Public Health Practitioners Union (KEHPHPU) and Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO).
Garissa Referral Hospital Operations Paralyzed as Healthcare Workers Down Tools Over Unfulfilled Promises
Nurses and clinicians continue strike at Garissa Referral Hospital demanding honouring of return-to-work deal
Ad
Ad