Atwoli Want ‘Dangerous’ Safaricom CEO Ndegwa Fired

Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) Kenya Secretary General Francis Atwoli has hit out at Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa urging the Safaricom Board of Directors to relieve him from his duties if he doesn’t back down from his current managerial style.

Atwoli through a statement said that he should be relieved because his managerial style seeks to maximize profits at the expense of its employees through a managerial restructure.

These demands come a day after a local daily reported that the new Safaricom CEO had caused anxiety among its more than 6,000 employees by asking a majority of them to reapply for their current jobs.

According to the COTU boss, this move by the telco CEO goes against ILO Conventions particularly on the protection of jobs.

“It’s insensitive and inhuman for Ndegwa to bring drastic changes at Safaricom PLC while infringing on the rights of workers who have built Safaricom to what it is today with more than 30 million subscribers. It is also shocking that even though Ndegwa is the first Kenyan Safaricom CEO he remains the most dangerous CEO in the company has ever had when it comes to protecting workers’ rights,” read the statement in part.

Atwoli while acknowledging that COTU doesn’t have control over the management style employers adopt from time to time, noted that the union was highly concerned about prospects of job security with the implementation of certain management styles.

In conclusion, Atwoli through the union demanded the Safaricom CEO stops forthwith causing anguish, despair, and depression among its employees in his mission to maximize profits.

Even though the mainstream media might not want to antagonize Safaricom, considering the huge revenues, we remain true to defending Workers' rights. Safaricom should value all their employees. Safaricom should employ all the M-PESA agents because they work for Safaricom. pic.twitter.com/ygGalah6uF

— COTU KENYA (@COTU_K) April 26, 2021