KENYA NATIONAL UNION OF NURSES EXTENDS ITS STRIKE BY 30 DAYS TO AUGUST 3

The Kenya National Union of Nurses (KNUN) has extended its planned nationwide strike notice for 30 days to allow for talks with national and county governments. Union Secretary General Seth Panyako said the strike, which was scheduled to begin on July 7 2025 will now be put on hold as the union seeks an agreement on long-running disputes over staffing and pay.
“Following the meeting that had been held today the strike that was supposed to start on July 7 2025 the council has unanimously resolved to extend the strike notice for 30 days,” said Panyako.
However, the union warned that if the talks fail, nurses will strike on Sunday, August 3 2025. The union issued the original strike notice on Thursday, May 29 2025, demanding that the government address acute nurse shortages in public health facilities and implement the return-to-work formula signed on Thursday, November 2, 2017.
Nurses are also pushing for the remittance of third-party deductions, the transfer of budget and grants to Mathari National Teaching and Referral Hospital and the conversion of nurses under the Universal Health Coverage programme to permanent and pensionable terms.
The union claims that nurses under the UHC programme receive half the salaries of colleagues under permanent terms, creating pay disparities and insecurity. Panyako noted that the union wants a centralised negotiation process instead of fragmented county-level discussions.