Kenyan employers are scrapping permanent and pensionable jobs in the country according to the latest statement from the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE).
Addressing a section of the media on Friday, September 15, the employers noted that the new move was informed by the country’s business environment, which they described as unfriendly and unpredictable.
They lamented that tax regimes introduced by President William Ruto had adverse effects both on employers and employees.
“We are concerned about the adverse effects the initiatives have on the cost of doing business and on the citizens,” stated FKE National President Habil Olaka, adding that these revenue measures come on the backdrop of the Finance Act 2023, high electricity tariffs and a tight monetary policy.
The employers implored the Kenya Kwanza administration to reconsider the proposals contained in the National Treasury’s Draft Medium Term Revenue strategy for financial years 2024/2025 to 2026/2027.
Olaka said the government should instead employ policies that will spur increased production and consumption, thereby increasing business activity while creating formal income opportunities.
“We are seeing more tax measures being proposed in order to raise the necessary revenue for the government to meet its development agenda. I think there is a need for that to be balanced by the fact that the disposable income for the common citizen and even the cost of doing business for enterprises is affected negatively,” Olaka insisted.
They advised Ruto to introduce incentives to help the growth of businesses which will then increase the tax bracket and save employees from the burden of taxation.
According to employees, they cannot increase salaries despite economic downtime due to business unpredictability in Ruto’s administration.
They however vowed to support President Ruto’s considerate plan of raising revenue to support government businesses.
On his side, Ruto indicated that locally raised revenue would save the country from external debt.
