The Geothermal Development Company (GDC) has moved to court seeking the dismissal of a petition filed by 62 of its employees, accusing them of attempting to “eat from both plates” by demanding union benefits while enjoying management privileges.
Through lawyer Ceceil Miller, the state-owned corporation told the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi that the workers redesignated from Grade 8 (unionisable staff) to Grade 7 (management), are now pushing a selfish agenda designed to exploit loopholes in labour rules.
According to court filings, GDC argues the employees want to retain allowances reserved for union members under the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), such as overtime pay, while at the same time pocketing higher salaries, commuter benefits, and housing allowances reserved for management.
“It is standard human resource practice worldwide that management staff are not entitled to overtime pay,” the company maintains, adding that it has instead introduced a call-out allowance for managers who put in extra hours.
On medical cover, GDC defended its scheme, stating that while unionisable staff can enroll a spouse and six children, management employees are limited to a spouse and four children but with “superior benefits” for each beneficiary.
The firm also cited government and Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) guidelines on hardship allowance, which set the figure at Sh12,300, and stressed that no gazette notice or SRC circular has authorized raising Nakuru staff’s house allowance from Sh35,000 to the Sh40,000 enjoyed by Nairobi employees, despite Nakuru’s new city status.
The company further noted that the High Court has already suspended management guidelines issued in May 2024, making some of the petitioners’ demands “legally untenable.”
“The petitioners want to retain union perks while enjoying management privileges and, in the process, deny opportunities for new graduates with equal qualifications. If allowed, taxpayers’ money will be lost irreversibly,” GDC warned.
But the workers, led by Evans Kiplagat Kimaiyo, insist the company’s move amounts to unfair labour practices and discrimination. They argue that their redesignation stripped them of allowances they previously enjoyed under union terms, leaving them disadvantaged compared to peers in similar state corporations.
They further dismissed GDC’s defence on medical cover, claiming management terms are inferior to those of union staff, and accused the company of breaching their constitutional rights to equality, fair labour practices, and fair remuneration.
The petitioners want the court to either reinstate them to union terms or compel GDC to harmonize their pay and benefits with those of comparable public sector workers.
The case is pending before the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi.
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