6,000 Kenya Power union employees to work under new performance contracts

The Kenya Power and Lighting Company has introduced performance management contracts for more than 6,000 unionisable employees.

In a statement on Wednesday, August 19, Kenya Power said that the move bringing staff represented by the Kenya Electrical Trades and Allied Workers Union (KETAWU) under the utility's performance management framework.

This follows more than two decades of negotiations between Kenya Power management and the union over the performance management of union employees.

The utility company said the initiative is intended to strengthen accountability, improve productivity and enhance service delivery to its customers.

It said the framework also aligns with the Government-Owned Enterprises Act, 2025, which requires commercial state corporations to submit annual business plans and adopt performance contracts based on measurable results.

Speaking during the launch, Kenya Power Managing Director and CEO Dr. (Eng.) Joseph Siror said the new system would link employees' work, targets and standards to the company's wider objectives.

“Productivity is not simply about doing more. It is about delivering better results through effective use of our time, our skills, our resources and our technology,” Siror said.

He said the company was seeking to become more efficient, reliable and focused on customers, adding that achieving this would depend on the work, targets and results delivered by individual employees.

The framework means Kenya Power will now monitor the productivity of its staff under a common performance management system, according to the company.

The process was guided by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) which described the move as an important step in linking organisational objectives with the work undertaken by individual employees.

SRC Chairperson Sammy Chepkwony challenged other public institutions to develop similar performance management frameworks covering employees across different cadres.

He said bringing union employees into performance contracts creates a direct link between organisational objectives and individual employee activities.

Kenya Power said the need for improved productivity and service delivery comes against the backdrop of a significant expansion in its customer base.

The company's customers have increased from about 370,000 in 1996 to 10.4 million currently.

According to Kenya Power, this growth has increased expectations for improved service delivery and customer satisfaction.

The company said performance management would therefore provide a framework for monitoring productivity across its workforce as it serves the expanded customer base.

The introduction of performance contracts for unionisable employees marks the culmination of negotiations between Kenya Power management and KETAWU that have lasted more than 20 years, according to the company.

Kenya Power described the move as historic, saying it places the utility among the first Government-owned enterprises to adopt performance contracts for union staff.

The company linked the development to the Government-Owned Enterprises Act, 2025, which provides for annual business plans and performance contracts anchored on measurable results for commercial state corporations.

Kenya Power Director Ruth Muiruri, who represented the Board Chairman during the launch, said the framework would have significance beyond compliance with the law.

She said it would support the attainment of corporate objectives through measurable improvements in service delivery.

The Board, she added, would continue working with management and KETAWU leadership to support implementation of the productivity management framework.

The new contracts now bring Kenya Power's unionisable workforce into the company's broader performance management system, with the utility saying the objective is to connect individual employee performance with organisational targets and customer service.