Labour Cabinet Secretary Florence Bore has halted plans to raise security guards' monthly salary to Ksh30,000.
In a detailed statement dated Wednesday, January 31, the Labour Cabinet Secretary remarked that her ministry could not authenticate and approve the recommendations as widely published.
CS Bore explained that the Labour Ministry was still in the dark regarding the recommendations to hike the security guards' salaries. She thus threw Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki under the bus regarding the new recommendations.
“As a Ministry, we cannot authenticate the stated publications and this is best responded to by the Ministry of Interior and National Administration or the Authority who are referred to in the publications,” her statement read in part.
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CS Bore clarified that the new Ksh30,000 salary for private security guards was published by the Private Security Regulatory Authority (PRSA) which is under the purview of the Interior Ministry.
Bore further explained that she could not approve the salary changes as there was an active case in court regarding private security monthly remuneration.
“As the matter is sub judice, I will not discuss the merits or demerits of the issues raised therein. We are confident the Court will render a just and fair verdict, in accordance with our Constitution and the law,” she remarked.
Bore thus halted the salary increment push insisting that all security guards will be paid as per the Regulation of Wages (General) (Amendment) Order, 2022.
She urged all stakeholders to remain calm as the government addresses the glaring hitches in the salary hike directive.
Bore issued a statement after the Private Security Regulatory Authority gave companies a 30-day ultimatum to comply with the new minimum wage structure.
PSRA Chief Executive Faizul Mahamed announced that security guards in Nairobi should earn Ksh30,000 and Ksh27,183 for the rest of the country.
Faizul noted that the figure should be the minimum wage all security officers take home in line with the stipulated laws.
"All private security companies must sign and submit to [email protected] a copy of the hereto attached legal commitment to pay government-set minimum wage for private security officers," read the letter in part.
"Take notice: Any private security company that fails to submit a duly signed and commissioned copy of the legal commitment within the next seven days from the date of this directive shall be subjected to a statutory review of its registration and licensing status."
