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>>Administration
>>Child Labour
>>Co-operative
>>Economics and
Research
>>Education
and Training >>Industrial
Relations
>>Gender
and Equality
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ADMINISTRATION
This
department is generally responsible for the following functions:-
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Human
Resource Management
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Generally
overseeing the smooth operating of the organisation
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Receiving
on behalf of the Secretary General all official correspondence to COTU(K).
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Assisting
the Secretary General to perform his/her functions
In
the trade unions the Administration Department is the equivalent of the Personal
Department in other organisation.
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CHILD
LABOUR (CAMPAIGN
AGAINST CHILD LABOUR)
1.
Introduction
1.1.
According to COTU (K) and its Affiliates, Child Labour is contentious in
Kenya because it is a human rights issue afflicting over 1.9 million children in
age-groups 6 years to 7 years.
1.2.
These children are supposed to be attending primary school education as
opposed to being subjected to exploitation and hazardous in work places.
 1.3.These affected children are the workers of tomorrow who are denied their
education due to several causative factors but mainly arising from: -
Ø A deficient primary school education system; too expensive,
inadequate school places and harsh and unattractive to promote learning;
yielding products that are unsuitable for the labour markets,
Ø
Poverty amongst Kenyans due to massive unemployment and
underemployment in an economy that is unable to create jobs and provide
sustainable employment for all economically active Kenyans.
Ø
Cultural practices that marginalise girl.
2.
The Trade Unions response to this scandal
2.1.
COTU (K) and its affiliates are advocating that: -
Ø
Schools and playgrounds are for children and all children must
have access to compulsory and free basic education up to a minimum age of 15
years;
Ø
Work places are for adults;
Ø
An educated labour force will strengthen the labour movement and
improve labour productivity and create more wealth;
Ø
An educated labour force will promote social justice and
democracy.
On these grounds, COTU (K)
and it's affiliates will campaign against the engagement of children in economic
or commercial activities for again before they attain the age of 18 yeas. At its
worst, this supply of labour by children prematurely, voluntary or through force
harms the children's normal physical growth.
2.2
Already COTU (K) and its
affiliates have established that children find jobs in:
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ECONOMIC SECTOR
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TRADE UNION CONCERNED
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Agriculture
|
Ø
Kenya Plantation and
Agricultural Workers' Union (KPAWU)
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Informal
Sector including commercial sex
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Ø
Kenya Union of
Commercial Food and Allied Workers (KUCFAW)
Ø
Kenya Local
Government Workers' Union (KLGWU)
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Domestic
Service
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Ø
Kenya Union of
Domestic Hotels Educational Institutions and Hospitals and Allied (KUDHEIHA)
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Quarry
and Mines
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Ø
Kenya Quarry and
Mine Workers Union
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Fisheries
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Ø
Kenya National Union
of Fishermen Workers (KNUFW)
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3. Specific actions being taken by COTU (K) and its
affiliates include: -
3.1
To secure:-
Ø
Observance of International Labour Organizations Core Convention
No.138 on the Minimum age of Employment by Kenya in 1979, and
Ø
Convention 182 on the worst forms of Child Labour.
Ø
Observance of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child
ratified by Kenya in 1990,
Ø
Compliance with OAU Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the
Child,
3.2
To advocate for full implementation of the New Children's Act. No. 8 of 2001 and
the recently ratified Convention 182 on the worst forms of Child labour which
target: -
Ø
Slave like labour practices, bonded or forced labour, >
Sale of children by parents/relatives,
Ø
The use of children for prostitution and the production of
pornographic performance or material and other illegal activities,
Ø
The exposure of
children to hazardous work likely to jeopardize their health, safety and morals
due to the manner of the circumstances in which it is performed or carried out,
Ø
Stop the employment for the very young (under 14 years) from any
forms of work as well as giving special protection to girls.
3.3
To enhance the knowledge and sharpen the sills of shopstewards and women workers
at the grassroots in detection or identification of all forms of Child Labour
and especially those listed at 3.2' and ascertain, document and make reports on
non observance of the international instruments and non compliance with national
legislation.
3.4 To advocate for the
harmonization of National with International instruments.
3.5 To
mobilize all stakeholders, including children themselves, to condemn the
tolerance of child labour as a survival strategy for poverty stricken or
marginalised groups in the Kenyan Society.
3.6 To
establish and strengthen the capacities of Child labour as a survival strategy
for poverty stricken or marginalised groups in the Kenyan society.
3.7
To establish and strengthen the capacity of Child Labour units at COTU (K) and
its affiliates named at paragraph 2.3.
3.8
To advocate for the full implementation of the National Poverty Eradication Plan
1999 - 2015, aimed at removing poverty from approximately 2.5 million households
who currently live below the poverty line.
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CO-OPERATIVE
Introduction
The
department was created in 1965 when COTU (K) was established and this is
reflected in COTU(K) constitution. Trade unions in Kenya were first involved in
Co-operative organisation early in 1962 when some leading trade unions leaders
visited Israel which is reputed to be the home of co-operatives. In their visit
their aim was to look at workers based consumer co-operative system with a view
to starting a similar venture in Kenya.
In
the preceding years the common goal of Kenya was to attain independence but the
idea of the formation of co-0operatives was eventually formally recognized with
the establishment of the co-operative department at COTU (K) in 1965. Since that
time the department has been at the forefront in the establishment of apex
bodies such as the Kenya union of savings and credit co-operatives Limited (KUSSCO),
The Co-operative Bank of Kenya and the National C-operative Housing Union.
Among
the Kenya functions of the department are:-
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Organise
Savings and Credit C-operatives Societies of workers in their work places.
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Sort
out disputes arising from among employers and Societies of not deducting
members shares and failing to remit to their respective societies.
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Hold
meeting with other International Organisation to seek assistance in
organising workers co-operative societies and enhancing their knowledge on
the new co-operative Act and rules
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ECONOMICS AND RESEARCH DEPARTMENT
This is a
very important department to the organisation as it acts as a service department
for not only the other departments but also to the affiliates . It is concerned
with the collection , analysis and interpretation of data with a view of coming
up with concrete supporting evidence in the support of workers cases at the
negotiating table.
The main
functions of this department are :-
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Collection
, analysis and interpretation of data for purposes of assisting die affiliates
prepare themselves adequately in the collective bargaining agreement
negotiations process ,
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Carrying
out research on me changes in the costs of living indices
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Preparing
background economic papers on behalf of COTU (K) on
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the
national economic and Social issues .
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Assisting
in the preparation of COTU (K) input, in our country's national budget .
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Assisting
the affiliates prepare their submissions to the Industrial Court especially
on issues in the
collective bargaining agreements that are of monetary aspect.
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Providing
resource persons who facilitate in workshops , seminars and conferences on
topics such as calculation of cost of living indices , calculation of
productivity changes , inflation trends , economics ,economic growth and
economic development among other topics.
This
department currently is also established in some of our affiliates and COTU (K)
is striving to make sure that all its affiliates will have an economics and
research department which is should be run by professional personnel.
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EDUCATION
AND TRAINING DEPARTMENT
This is a
very important department of the organisation which helps in imparting knowledge
and skills to both union leaders and rank and file membership . Since its
inception the department has been able to offer a variety of trade union courses
such as :-
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Organisation
and recruitment skills, courses
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Negotiations
and collective bargaining skills courses
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Courses on
research methodologies
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Courses on
integrating gender issues into the mainstream trade union activities
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Courses on
training of trainers who eventually become trainers at the affiliate and
shoplevel
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Study cycle
educational programs that target the membership at their respective
workplaces
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Courses
tackling the HIV/AIDS pandemic
The Tom
Mboya Labour College which is located in Kisumu some 500 kilometers from COTU (K) headquarters in Nairobi is an important and integral part of the
education department. This college was built by workers contribution in form of
a levy . In addition the American Federation of Labor – Central Industrial Organisation (AFL-CIO) assisted in the building of the college.
The college
has all the capacity to offer various courses in trade union activities and its
main purpose is to equip union leaders with skills so that they can effectively
protect the rights and interests of workers in Kenya . The current leadership at
COTU (K) is looking into ways of expanding the existing physical facilities. It
is also envisaged that before the and of this year the college will be connected
to the world via internet.
Currently
the curriculum of the college is being reviewed with the aim of incorporating
the emerging economic challenges facing workers .Issues of productivity and
respect of fundamental International Labour Organization Conventions are
also to be addressed in depth. Eventually it is hoped that the college would be
able to offer Degree courses on trade union related education.
Some of the
achievements of the education department are :-
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Equipping
union leaders from the shoplevel upto the national level with organisation
and recruitment skills.
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Equipping
union leaders from the shoplevel upto the national level with modem
collective bargaining agreement negotiations skills .
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Equipping
union leaders from the shoplevel upto the national level with communication
skills.
-
Integrating
of gender issues in trade unions and this has been evidenced by the
establishment of women department in most of our affiliates . This
departments have also been incorporated in the unions constitutions.
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Many
trainers in trade unions have been trained and they can now be used as
facilitators in the various programs that we run for our affiliates.
COTU (K) PANAF STUDY CIRCLE
EDUCATION
COTU (K) PANAF Study Circle
Education Programme is a unique program as it is focused on
training rank and file at the work places. This kind of Trade
Union education is very important to the trade unions as it
forms the basis of Trade Union leadership.
The aims and objectives of
Panaf Programme are:
(a) Promote Trade Union
unity;
(b) Create capacity within
Trade Union membership to participate effectively in National
issues.
(c) Address the current
challenges facing the Trade Union movement.
COTU (K) Panaf Project was
initiated by the International Confederation of Free Trade Union
in the African Region, ICFTU-AFRO, Organisation of African Trade
Union Unity, OATUU and LOTCO Sweden. COTU (K) Panaf Project was
launched in February 2005. The project in the year 2006,
developed a Training Manual with a title COTU (K) Basic
Training Manual for workers. The project is funded by
LO/TCO-Sweden.
The topics contained in
the manual are:
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The Study Circle.
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History of Trade Union in Kenya.
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Trade Union Structure and functions.
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Democracy in Trade Unions.
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Gender and Equality.
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Labour Laws and ILO core conventions.
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The Shopsteward.
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Organising and Recruiting.
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Collective Bargaining Agreements,
Recognition Agreement and Industrial Relations.
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Grievance handling procedures.
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Communication.
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Occupational Health, Safety and
Environment.
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Trade Union approach in the fight against
HIV/Aids.
The Study Circle
Background:
The Study Circle has its
roots in our own traditional learning situation, whereby people
did not learn in school, but learning took place. Information
was passed down from generation to generation using group
discussions, songs, story telling, poems and proverbs. This type
of learning took place in small huts and around fire places. The
grandmothers, grandfathers and elders acted as the Study Circle
Leaders.
The Study Circle:
The specific aims of a
general workers education is to provide union members with:
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The opportunity to express and share
their experiences and roles both in trade union and society.
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The ability to influence and utilize the
resources of Trade Union as a support in their own situations.
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The means of developing trade union
organisations in ways they feel are in the best of their interest.
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Study Circle education plays a major role
in changing members attitudes towards different situations.
The study manual has been
piloted and tested by different groups of workers and study
circle leaders within COTU (K) affiliates. Most of the workers
who have gone through this training manual, have commented that,
the manual is very useful and have recommended it to be
translated into Kiswahili.
So far COTU (K) Panaf Study
Circle education programme since its launch in 2005 has managed
to train about Six Thousand One Hundred and Twenty Eight (6,128)
Study Circle members and Three Hundred Thirty (330) Study Circle
leaders in Chemelil, Nairobi, Mombasa, Naivasha, Thika, Eldoret,
Nakuru, Webuye and Sony Sugar Company.
The project in the year 2008
targets to train One Hundred and Fifty (150) new Study Circle
leaders and Three Thousand (3000) Study Circle members. The
Study Circle leadership will be held in Thika - Central
Province, Kericho - Rift Valley and Athi-River - Eastern
Province.
COTU (K) Panaf Study Circle Education Programme editorial
material development committee is intending to develop Basic II
Training Manual on Conflict Resolution Management and Trade
Union Human Rights.
This Training Manual will be used on training workrs on causes
of conflic, how they affect citizens and how the affected could
be assisted.
We hope the training manual on Conflict Resolution and
Management once developed will be useful to the workers who had
been affected during the recent clashes in the country.
Check on our Training Events
link for the programme of activities to be organised in the year
2008.
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INDUSTRIAL
RELATIONS DEPARTMENT
The
core functions of any trade unions has been recruitment of members and handling
their grievances which is
the mantle of the Industrial Relations department. The operations of this department
are guided by the Trade Disputes Act Cap 234, the Industrial Relations Charter,
existing labour laws and type International Labour organisation corrections.
This department has handled trade disputes of employees and affiliates.
There
are four main types of trades disputes that are handled by this department
namely:-
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An
individual dispute - This is dispute between an individual employee and
his/her employer. |
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A
collective dispute - This involves a group of workers or their
representatives and one or more employers. Each and every claimant in this
dispute must have the same kind of complaint. |
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A
rights disputer - This involves the interpretation or application of an
existing right as laid down in labour legislation, collective bargaining agreement,
an individual labour contract or an existing practice. |
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An
interests dispute - Involves a claim for future rights and this normally
result from a deadlock in collective barging negotiations
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The
department performs the following functions:-
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Handles
workers grievances of both the members of our affiliates and non-members.
Most of their kind of disputes emanate from unfair termination of
employment.
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Handling
on behalf of our affiliates disputes with employers as regards the
collective bargaining agreement and its negotiation and implementation.
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Assist
affiliates in the preparation of their submission to the Industrial court.
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Liaising
with the other social partners namely the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE)
and the Ministry of Labour and Human Resource Development on issues related
to trade disputes.
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Offering
advisory services to our afflicts
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THE
WOMEN AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
 This
is a department within the framework of other departments in COTU (K). The
department's role is to attend to all matters that relate to women affairs in
their day-to-day work, be it in their working places, homes or the community.
THE
PURPOSE:
The
main functions of the department are: -
(a)
To co-ordinate women activities within the trade union movement.
(b)
Motivate women workers into joining unions.
(c)
Stimulate the women to formulate, design and implement development projects.
(d)
Provide fundamental trade union leadership skills to women so that they can
play a larger role in the activities of their trade unions.
(e) To encourage the formation of
formal/ informal welfare/savings groups, among women workers,
(f)
Reach out to involve more rural women in the trade union movement.
(g)
To motivate women to contribute more in the National Development in their role
as workers.
(h)
Provide a forum for interaction of working women with other unions and other
development oriented women organisations.
(i)
To facilitate information exchange locally and in international forums.
WHY
DID COTU (K) DECIDE TO ESTABLISH THE WOMEN AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
The
realisation by the National Body COTU (K) that women are not participating
fully in the trade union movement, although they constitute a large number in
the paid workforce.
So
far there are few trade union officials who are women thus leaving most of the
decision - making to men even those decisions that affect them. Thus the need
to have the women's department whose sole responsibility is the concern of
women. The ultimate goal is to motivate and stimulate women to take an active,
participative role in the Labour Movement.
HOW
IT WILL WORK
The
major role of the department will be coordinating women activities within the
trade unions that are affiliated to COTU (K). It will also act as a source of
information desk on various issues that affect women be it in the area of
health care, paid work-force. child-care, safety measures, etc.
The
department will build on the existing networks within the unions affiliated to
COTU (K) to put women working committees in touch with each other and
facilitate exchange of information locally and internationally.
AREAS
OF INTEREST
The
day-to-day happening, in our homes, communities and in the paid workforce is
always a concern to women. The department will look into various areas that
will help increase women participation in trade unions and impart a sense of
oneness with their fellow male union members in the Labour Movement.
Issues
related to education of women workers, safety measures, child-care, income
generation, equal pay for work of equal value appropriate technology, day care
centres, labour saving devices will be of great interest to the department.
Close
collaboration with affiliated unions will ensure proper flow of information
and that women views are communicated to the decision makers.
WHAT
DOES THE DEPARTMENT HOPE TO ACHIEVE
The
department's ultimate goal is to see more women participating in the trade union
movement, having a greater say in the paid labour force and ultimately being
involved in the decision-making process on issues that affect them. The desk
will provide a forum for giving women more control over their own destiny in the
labour movement and providing the kind of information that they need to be able
to make decisions on matters affecting them so that they will feel more
confident within the male dominated world of trade unionism. The aim is slowly
move them from the "periphery" to the "core" of the Trade
Union Movement.
In
addition to the aforesaid issues concerning women workers, the department is
also taking the responsibility of integrating gender issues into Trade Unions
and creating awareness on the effects of HIV/AIDS epidemic to both affected and
infected workers through education and counseling services
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