Flower farm workers up in arms over lack of representation by the Union

Flower farm workers in Naivasha have threatened to withdraw their union contributions due to what they termed as poor representation against poor working conditions and low salaries.The workers, through their shop stewards,pointed at the Kenya Plantationsand Agricultural Workers Union (KPAWU) over failed leadership in the sector that employs thousands of workers.The irate workers called for change, noting that COTU Secretary-General Francis Atwoli, who also chairs KPAWU, was no longer interested in their welfare but was keen on politics.This led to botched branch elections in Naivasha town, which were called off at the last minute without any reason by KPAWU officials.Follow The Standard
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on WhatsAppAccording to Shadrack Wasike, working conditions and low salaries were the order of the day in many of the flower farms in the country.He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
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on WhatsApp

The workers, through their shop stewards,pointed at the Kenya Plantationsand Agricultural Workers Union (KPAWU) over failed leadership in the sector that employs thousands of workers.The irate workers called for change, noting that COTU Secretary-General Francis Atwoli, who also chairs KPAWU, was no longer interested in their welfare but was keen on politics.This led to botched branch elections in Naivasha town, which were called off at the last minute without any reason by KPAWU officials.Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsAppAccording to Shadrack Wasike, working conditions and low salaries were the order of the day in many of the flower farms in the country.He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
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on WhatsApp

The irate workers called for change, noting that COTU Secretary-General Francis Atwoli, who also chairs KPAWU, was no longer interested in their welfare but was keen on politics.This led to botched branch elections in Naivasha town, which were called off at the last minute without any reason by KPAWU officials.Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsAppAccording to Shadrack Wasike, working conditions and low salaries were the order of the day in many of the flower farms in the country.He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

This led to botched branch elections in Naivasha town, which were called off at the last minute without any reason by KPAWU officials.Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsAppAccording to Shadrack Wasike, working conditions and low salaries were the order of the day in many of the flower farms in the country.He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

According to Shadrack Wasike, working conditions and low salaries were the order of the day in many of the flower farms in the country.He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

He noted that despite their protest, their union leaders, led by Atwoli, remained silent, yet they collected millions in monthly contributions.“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

“We were supposed to hold our branch elections to usher in new faces who will articulate our challenges, but the exercise has been suspended,” he said.Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

Wasike vowed that they would not accept the union to handpick officials for them, even as he called on the CS for Labor to visit the workers and establish their working conditions.This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

This was echoed by BradwelWafula, who said that they were tired of contributing to a union that was not supporting its workers.He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

He said that the workers who continued to earn peanuts had suffered long enough, adding that they would not stand back as union officials manipulated the elections.“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

“We are giving Atwoli and his aging union colleagues 14-days to call for fresh elections, failure to which we shall stop all our union dues,” he said.Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

Lakeview MCA Alex Mbugua, whose ward houses most of the flower farm workers, attributed the crisis in the sector to aging top leadership.He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

He said that despite the sector raking in billions in flower sales every year, many of the workers were earning less than Sh6,000, making it hard to survive.“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

“The only way forward is to kick out these aging union leaders as they have done their part, and this can be achieved through democratic elections,” he said.Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

Another worker, Fridah Omulama, told of their shock on learning that the elections, which were called last month, had been postponed indefinitely.Stay informed. Subscribe to our newsletterBy clicking on theSIGN UPbutton, you agree to ourTerms & Conditionsand thePrivacy PolicySIGN UP“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

“Some top officials want to impose some leaders on us, and we shall not be cowed by the union and oppressed in our workplace,” she said.Stay Informed, Stay Empowered: Download the Standard ePaper App!Follow The Standard
channel
on WhatsApp

Follow The Standard
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on WhatsApp

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