The retrenchment at Radio Africa Group continued yesterday, with more employees from Star newspaper and its broadcast division being given sacking letters. Among those sacked on Wednesday Feb. 8th was Wanjiru Kinoti, who seems to have fallen victim of the scrapping of the opinion desk, where the entire team has been sent home. But her sacking has raised hue and cry at Radio Africa in an action that brings out the monster side of media houses.
Ms Wanjiru, a former chief subeditor of the Star newspaper, had just returned from sick leave she took mid last year to seek specialized treatment – and even ended up flying to India. It’s not clear whether her illness and long sick leave contributed to the sacking or it was purely a coincidence that she was a member of a team that became redundant.
Insiders say Radio Africa Group human resources department has a rule that terminates your employment if you stay away from work for at least three months. After recovering, however, Wanjiru got her job back, and must have been delighted that the management had empathized with her condition by waiving the rule.
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She confided in a friend that indeed she needed a job to hang on to after spending all her savings on treatment. “She came back looking frail and getting her job was seen as a lifeline,” said a journalist from Radio Africa. “Everyone liked this decision. This job was the only hope she had.”
It is said staff had to contribute towards her medical bills after she exhausted her company medical cover. “It’s by God’s grace that she’s a live today,” said the journalist.
But on Wednesday, she was called to the boardroom where exit interviews for employees were being held and everyone knew, it was over for her. Taking calculated steps her weak legs could make, she hobbled into the boardroom, fingers crossed and biting her lower lip, where she met the HR team that eventually delivered another setback for her: her job was no more.
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Yes, someone who had been sick for half a year and without anything to fall back to but her job was fired – just like that! In media, commercial interests overshadow everything else. This comes barely two weeks after the company sacked an expectant sales lady who was due in a month.
Meanwhile, the other who were fired include radio anchor Njeri Ngugi and radio reporter Joyce Jura. On a day that many imagined the gunslingers had finished their job, the two were surprised when their boss, Susan Kiprono, delivered the bad news to them.
Also, two accountants were shown the door, including a long-serving finance manager who was among the pioneer team that started KISS 100. Sources say she earned over Sh500,000 per month and had become arrogant to the point of pissing off many of his colleagues.
[crp]
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