BY SAM ALFAN.
The Court of Appeal has suspended the promotion and salary increment of graduate police officers pending hearing and determination of the appeal lodged by the National Police service commission.
The court said that funds needed to satisfy the impugned judgment are not funds at the disposal of the applicants or in their coffers and that such funds have to be budgeted for and that takes a process in which the applicants are not the only players.
“We hereby suspend implementation directing Police Service Commission and National Police service to pay all graduate constables salaries equivalent to pay of an Inspector of Police Job Group J and as per the prevailing commission’s policy as clarified in the press release by the Chairperson on 19.03.2018,” ruled Justice Martha Koome, Ole Sankale and W Karanja.
They further added that “the stay orders sought ought to be granted. Consequently, we allow the application and stay execution of the judgement dated May 17, 2019 with orders that costs of this application.”
The National Police Commission had argued that if the stay orders are not granted and the appeal succeeds, the reversal process could be quite onerous and impracticable particularly to institutions or persons that are not party to these proceedings.
“On the other hand, if the appeal, which has already been filed is determined in favour of the respondents, they will have nothing to lose as their back pay can always be paid to them”, argued the commission.
The appeal was filed after the Employment and Labour Relations Court Judge Bryan Onyaya directed the National Police Service to pay all graduate constables salaries equivalent to pay of an Inspector of Police Job Group J and as per the prevailing 1st respondent’s policy as clarified in the press release by the Chairperson on 19.03.2018.
The court declared that graduate police officers who are university graduates on a salary scale below Job Group J and yet similarly qualified as Graduate Police Officers in Job Group J are entitled to be emplaced to pay scale of graduate constables equivalent to pay of an Inspector of Police Job Group J and as per the prevailing commission ’s policy.
The lower court also declared that the national police commission’ conduct and action amounts to denial, violation, infringement and or threat to the fundamental rights and freedoms of Graduate Constable Officers’ rights under Articles 41(1) and (2) (a) and (b), and 47 of the Constitution of Kenya, 2010.
They claimed that they have degree certificates yet their pay is the same as that of non-graduates.
In the suit, the officers and the activist who filed the case claimed that while graduate officers move to Job Group J after presenting a degree certificate, they instead earn just as ordinary police constables In Job Group F.
The four are faulting NPSC for refusing to follow this practice and pay them as required as well as promote them to the rank of an inspector.
“NPSC has confirmed that upon submission of respective degree certificates, graduate police constables would be accordingly remunerated in keeping with the January 1, 1969 practice, paying them under Job Group J.
Notwithstanding this commitment, our employer continues to ignore, neglect or refuse to pay us and other qualified graduate constables,” said the petitioners.
They told the court that on July 26, 1995, the then commissioner of police received approval from the permanent secretary in the Directorate of Personnel Management to consider and remunerate graduate officers in Job Group J.
