Kenya: Over one million rendered jobless as Covid-19 takes a toll on businesses
"Over one million rendered jobless in Kenya as Covid-19 takes toll on businesses"
At least one million Kenyans have lost their jobs or have been put on indefinite unpaid leave as the Covid-19 pandemic morphs into a major jobs crisis. Multiple interviews and a compilation of public data from some of the companies suggest that the numbers could be higher, especially when casual labourers are factored in...
The Chinese contractor building the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) sent 4,013 Kenyans and 471 Chinese expats on unpaid leave due to the coronavirus crisis. The worst-hit companies are in the tourism, transport, horticulture, communication and education sectors. At Kenya Airways, there is a thick cloud of helplessness as its more than 4,000 employees wait for a government bailout and the lifting of travel restrictions. The pay of a majority of its staff was cut by 75 per cent...