KISUMU, KENYA — Hotel employees in the Nyanza region are calling upon President William Ruto to address their urgent need for a salary increase, highlighting the severe economic pressures they face and the lack of wage adjustments over the past two years.
Chadwick Oloto, the Nyanza regional branch secretary of the Kenya Hotel and Allied Workers Union, articulated the numerous challenges confronting hotel workers nationwide, including inadequate compensation and precarious job security.
“As leaders representing hotel workers, we fully understand the pain they are going through,” Oloto conveyed to journalists in Kisumu on April 30, in advance of the Labour Day commemorations.
He implored President Ruto and Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) Secretary-General Francis Atwoli to utilize the Labour Day national platform to advocate for the welfare of hotel workers.
“President Ruto and Atwoli, please take tomorrow’s occasion to speak for hotel workers. Many are earning as little as Sh10,000 a month—an amount that can no longer sustain basic needs in today’s economy,” he emphasized.
Oloto also expressed deep concern regarding the adverse working environments experienced by hotel staff, accusing some hotel managements of systematically undermining workers and even terminating the employment of those who join labor unions.
He urged Atwoli to remain resolute in his advocacy for all workers, irrespective of their industry or union affiliations. “You are our voice. Do not neglect any sector—stand up and fight for all workers,” Oloto appealed.
The union is now demanding a 40 percent salary increment, a substantial increase from the 15 percent adjustment granted two years prior.
