The Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) has dismissed Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU-K) Secretary General Francis Atwoli’s interpretation of the 12% wage increase announced by President William Ruto on Labour Day as applying to all Kenyan workers. FKE Executive Director and CEO Jacqueline Mugo says Atwoli’s assertion seeks to cause confusion and unnecessary tension between employers and their employees.
In a statement, the FKE says:
The interpretation by COTU (K) Secretary General, Francis Atwoli that the 12% Wage increase announced by the President on 1st May 2026 is applicable to all Kenyan workers is erroneous, unfounded and deliberately misleading.
The law only grants power to regulate Minimum Wages nor general wages. This is done through the tripartite Wages Councils as gazetted from time to time.
Any government-directed wage adjustments apply strictly to the statutory minimum wages, as prescribed in the Regulation of Wages Orders and not the actual wages payable to all employees.
Employers have the legal discretion to determine wages above the statutory minimum wages based on contracts of employment, collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), productivity, and market dynamics.
Wage increases beyond statutory minimum wages are typically negotiated between employers and employees (or their trade unions) through established collective bargaining processes as stipulated in the Labour Relations Act, 2007
