Atwoli Secretary General of COTU requests for an amendment to the Work Injury Benefits Act

16 JUNE, NAIROBI, KENYA – Francis Atwoli, Secretary General of the Central Organization for Trade Unions (COTU), has asked for an amendment to the Work Injury Benefits Act that would require businesses to compensate employees who are wounded or killed while on the job.

Atwoli stated that having such a law will ensure that victims of work-related accidents do not have to go through a lot of channels, including the courts, to get compensation.

Due to the lack of a law, most employees have been denied compensation, according to Atwoli.

Atwoli stated that “The incoming 13th Parliament should amend the Work Injury Benefits Act and incorporate Occupational Health And Safety as part of fundamental principles and rights at work. This will make it compulsory for employers to compensate their affected employees”.

Atwoli’s proposal comes just weeks after the family of a man who worked for a steel company and was killed in a furnace rejected a settlement offer from the company.

Caleb Otieno’s family was initially handed Sh420,000 by the management of Thika-based Blue Nile Rolling Mills Limited, which was met with an uproar.

The money was not to be given entirely at once, but in five installments of Ksh 7,000, according to the company.

After negotiations failed, the family turned to the courts to determine the compensation package.