Government declares crackdown on employers defying workers’ pay rise directive
employers defying workers’ pay rise
employers defying workers’ pay rise
Appearing before the Senate plenary on Wednesday, July 22, Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua said inspection officers will be deployed across the country to ensure full compliance with the law.
The CS disclosed that he would personally oversee the enforcement exercise to ensure every Kenyan worker receives the minimum wage applicable based on their location.
“I will ensure that Kenyan workers are paid in line with the gazetted minimum wage that I recently published. I will direct my officers to move around to ensure all workers are paid per the gazetted minimum wage,” Mutua said.
However, Mutua explained that the minimum wage varies depending on geographical location, with workers in major towns earning higher wages than those in other parts of the country due to differences in the cost of living.
“But you must understand that not all Kenyans in the same job category are paid the same amount across the country. They are paid based on their locations and the cost of living in those localities,” he added.
The compliance crackdown follows the publication of new minimum wage rates by the Ministry of Labour through a gazette notice dated June 26, 2026.
In the notice, the ministry published the Regulation of Wages (General) (Amendment) Order, 2026, and the Regulation of Wages (Agricultural Industry) (Amendment) Order, 2026, setting revised monthly wages for all workers.
Under the new wage schedules, employees in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru and Eldoret would earn higher minimum wages than workers in municipalities and other parts of the country.
The revised rates increased the minimum monthly salary for cleaners, sweepers, gardeners, messengers and watchmen in the five cities to Ksh18,047.40.
Workers classified as miners, stone cutters, cooks, waiters, line cutters and loggers would earn at least Ksh19,491.33 per month, while night watchmen would receive a minimum of Ksh20,133.72.
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Machine attendants, bakery assistants, sawmill workers and employees in similar occupations would henceforth earn a minimum monthly salary of Ksh20,454.86.
The order also raised the minimum wage for machinists, shoe repairers, petrol station attendants, junior clerks, laundry operators and light tractor drivers to Ksh23,350.21.
On the other hand, the minimum wage for printing machine operators, bakery machine operators, machine tool operators, dough makers, copy typists and light van drivers was raised to Ksh24,358.73.
Receptionists, telephone operators, storekeepers, general clerks, pattern designers and garment cutters would receive a minimum monthly salary of Ksh27,796.51.
Meanwhile, salesmen, crawler tractor drivers and dryers would earn Ksh33,820.24, building caretakers and saw doctors would receive Ksh37,426.84, while cashiers would take home a minimum of Ksh40,724.23 per month.
The revised wage orders followed President William Ruto’s directive during the Labour Day celebrations on May 1, where he announced a 12 percent increase in the general wage and a 15 percent increase for workers in the agricultural sector.
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