Hundreds of former and current employees at the Standard Group on Thursday, November 14, have called on the government to intervene so that they can be paid their months dues.
The staff, in a statement seen by Kenyans.co.ke further revealed that their colleagues who were laid off following redundancy plans by the company had equally been affected by the latest crisis at the Mombasa Road-based media house.
The employees through their lobby groups called for the government’s intervention into the company’s failure to honour their one-year redundancy payment plan as was the agreement at the time of their contract termination.
According to the employees, as of November, not one of the agreed-upon installments has been paid, leaving them in financial distress and untold suffering as they struggle to make ends meet.
”In July 2024, Standard Group PLC declared redundancies, leading to a wave of layoffs. The company promised former employees a one-year redundancy payment plan, with installments due in September, October, and November 2024. However, as of November, neither the first nor the second installments have been paid, leaving former staff in financial distress,’’ the workers revealed in a statement.
The staff also added that the former employees were sent home after a recent redundancy where the company only paid a one-month salary.
”In addition, Standard Group PLC has yet to pay outstanding salary arrears owed to current and former employees, covering eight months: June, July, and August 2023, as well as March, April, May, June, and July 2024. Employees were sent home with only one month’s salary and a promise that their dues would be paid over time, but this has not materialized,’’ the employees added.
According to them, they have been unable to afford to meet their daily needs including payment of school fees to their children among other bills.
The employees further revealed that the Standard Group has failed to remit key deductions from the employee paychecks, making it hard for them to get clearance from key agencies. They added that this has since made it hard for them to get new jobs.
