Airtel Kenya fires 60 employees

Airtel Kenya has embarked on a strategic restructuring that will reposition the business and reinforce its competitiveness in the market place. The exercise, which is focused on aligning the company’s structure with its operating model, also entailed a right-sizing that impacted 60 members of Airtel’s current workforce.

This announcement was made by Adil El Youssefi, CEO Airtel Kenya, via a press statement which was released to the media, the statement informs that the strategy’s main aim is to improve the organization and that the employees affected by the downsizing will be more than duly compensated.

“One of the key objectives is to create a high performing organization, which satisfies the needs of all of our stakeholders, especially our customers, as we step into the next growth phase of our operation,” Youssefi’s statement read.

“Airtel is sensitive towards the affected staff and is committed to minimizing the impact of this exercise on the employees. As a way of helping the affected staff members during the transition, the Company is compensating above what is prescribed by the prevailing laws,” it continued.

In Kenya, according to the Employment Act 2007, Severance pay is equivalent to 15 days basic wages for each completed year of employment.

Apart from meeting the requirements of the employment act, Airtel Kenya according to the statement, will also contract a reputable organization to offer job search services and provide the training that the fired employees would need to find new opportunities. The Company also made it clear that it would meet the full cost of this support.