Auctions in Kenya: Properties belonging to the East African Portland Cement are set to be auctioned in a bid to recover a Sh. 1.4 billion debt that is owed to workers.
This follows the cement manufacturer’s inability to fully implement a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The auctioneer will be seeking to recover Sh. 1,401,585,364, which is the amount being claimed by more than 400 workers covered in the 2013–2015 CBA.
The Kenya Chemical and Allied Workers Union (Kcawu) has already obtained the services of an auctioneer, who will start attaching EAPCC property upon expiry of the notice. The said CBA was the subject of a dispute before the Labour Court and the Court of Appeal. Portland Cement was aggrieved that the court had directed it to increase wages for contract. employees.
Auctions in Kenya: EAPCC Dispute
The CBA was the subject of a dispute before the Labour Court and the Court of Appeal. Portland Cement was aggrieved that the court had directed it to increase wages for contract. employees.
Court of Appeal judges GBM Kariuki, Fatuma Sichale and Sankale ole Kantai, held that upon the contract staff who were not part of management becoming members of Kcawu on payment of union dues, they were entitled to benefit from the negotiated CBA.
“It did not therefore matter whether EAPCC explicitly stated the full category of workers covered by the negotiations so long as it was understood that the negotiations covered union members of that particular cadre unless the contract staff were expressly excluded in the CBA,” said the appellate judges.