Telkom-Kenya employees get 24 percent pay rise

After more than a month of negotiations, Telkom-Kenya's 2,500 unionized employees will receive 24 percent pay raises, the company announced.

The raises will be backdated to April 1 and take effect immediately, said CEO Dominique Saint Jean. The higher pay will cost Telkom-Kenya 22 million Kenyan shillings (US$355,175) monthly.

An agreement between the Kenya Telecommunication Workers Union and Telkom-Kenya stipulates that management will be required to consult with the union on any further company restructuring. The agreement will run for one year, after which there will be a review.

Saint Jean hopes that the pay rise will improve relations among employees and management, and increase productivity.

Telkom-Kenya had been on a restructuring course before the government sold 51 percent of the communications firm to France Télécom, and has reduced its workforce from 12,000 to the current 3,033, with 2,500 of the employees members of the union, said Benson Okwaro, the union secretary general.

France Télécom paid $390 million for its stake in Telkom-Kenya, which was heavily in debt.

Telkom-Kenya operates 280,000 landlines, CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) lines and a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) license that France Télécom will operate under its Orange brand name.

Swedish telecommunication company Ericsson signed an agreement with Telkom-Kenya and is set to commence the countrywide rollout of Telkom-Kenya's GSM network components, including base transmission stations. The network is expected to make Telkom-Kenya more competitive and to offer discounted packages for landline, CDMA, GSM and wireless services to individuals and companies.