Former employees of the cash-strapped Standard Group have called for solidarity from the public after the company failed to honour its commitment to pay their final dues, making life unbearable for them.
In press release dated, November 2024, the over 400 former staff called for corporate responsibility and criminal liability by boycotting all products of the publicly listed giant that is struggling to remain afloat.
The former employees are also appealing to Labour Rights groups, Kenyan and international corporations doing business with the Standard Group, shareholders and advertising agencies to pile pressure on the firm’s management to pay its former and current employees and fulfil its legal and ethical obligations.
Notably, the appeal came days after the former workers appealed to the Government, Capital Markets Authority (CMA), Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) and international human rights organizations to intervene.
“We have written numerous letters to the main Shareholders Gideon Moi and Joshua Kulei, Standard Group Board, Chief Executive Office, Chief Finance Officer and the Human Resource Manager seeking to know when we will be paid our dues. The Management has been quiet and unresponsive,” said one former employee.
“The last time remittances were done to NSSF was in September 2022. For KRA, it goes as far back as 2018, some months PAYE was not remitted, yet it was deducted from our payslips. This means we cannot get Tax Clearance Certificates to pursue employment opportunities which goes against our right to a livelihood,” another one said.
Also Read: Fresh Headache for Standard Group CEO After Recalling Fired Employees
Years of Failed Promises from Standard Group
In the last four years, the once acclaimed media house has hundreds of employees through voluntary resignation and mass redundancies when the listed giant turned to trimming its payroll, in a bid to save the ship.
Despite promises to pay what is owed to them, nothing has been forthcoming, and the former staff say they have been turned into beggars pleading.
Through several redundancy exercises, more than 300 employees were sent home and offered packages that SG has failed to honour.
The most recent was in July 2024, when the company promised former employees a one-year redundancy payment plan, with the first two instalments due in September, or October 2024.
As of November 2024, neither the first nor the second instalments have been paid, leaving former staff in financial distress.
In addition, Standard Group is yet to clear outstanding salary arrears owed to former and current employees covering eight months: June, July, and August 2023, as well as March, April, May, June, and July 2024.
Tales of Despair
Former Standard Group staff have shared stories of hardship, with many facing eviction due to unpaid rent, struggling to pay school fees for their children, and unable to afford food or essential medication. Some have turned to casual labor to make ends meet.
The Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) has condemned Standard Group’s actions, describing them as “serious violations of labour and human rights,” and called on authorities and labour rights organizations to stand in solidarity with affected former and current employees.
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The Standard and Network SACCO members face financial struggles as the SACCOs halted lending and froze withdrawals over three years ago.
Despite the Commissioner for Co-operative Development issuing Agency Notices to recover funds, members still lack a clear timeline for accessing their savings.
One SACCO member shared, “We’ve been in the dark too long. Many of us depend on these funds for crucial expenses like healthcare and school fees. While we appreciate the Commissioner’s involvement, we need to know when we can expect our money.”
Also Read: Standard Group CEO Convenes Meeting with Former Employees
Urgent call for accountability and action
As a listed company, at the Nairobi Securities Exchange, NSE, former Standard Group employees are asking the CMA to delist the company and hold shareholders, board members, and management accountable for violating workers’ rights.
They also call on the Ministry of Labour, the Retirement Benefits Authority, and other authorities to take decisive action and ensure accountability including:
- Full and prompt payment of all salary arrears owed to former and current employees from June, July, and August 2023, and March through July 2024.
- Adherence to the redundancy payment plan as promised to recently laid-off employees, with the immediate settlement of instalments for September, October, and November 2024.
- Full and prompt payment of dues owed to former employees who left the company voluntarily or through voluntary early retirement and redundancy.
- Immediate remittance of all withheld deductions to KRA, NSSF, NHIF/SHIF, private pension schemes, and SACCO savings, enabling former employees and SACCO members to access the services and benefits they are entitled to under the Kenyan laws
- Establishment of a clear timeline for SACCO Fund Recovery under the oversight of the CCD, providing SACCO members with transparency and a defined path to reclaiming their savings.
The calls came a day after company CEO Marion Gathoga Mwangi invited some of the former workers for a meeting. At the same time, the current staff had planned for a total shutdown of the company on November 28.
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