PS Oluga reveals why there will be no gratuity for UHC workers
By Cynthia Lodite, August 6, 2025Principal Secretary for the State Department for Medical Services, Dr Oluga Ouma, has issued a firm clarification on the ongoing debate over gratuity for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) workers.
The Health PS has stated that those transitioning from contract to permanent and pensionable terms will not be eligible for gratuity, contrary to what the workers are calling for.
According to Oluga, settling gratuity signifies the end of a contractual relationship, which contradicts the current transition plan backed by the Public Service Commission (PSC).
Oluga made his remarks on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, during a radio interview while further explaining how the contractual process was done for the Universal Health Care workers from a previous three-year contract to six contract.
“The UHC workers should hear me extremely well and then go read the law. If we pay you a gratuity, it is like we say goodbye to you, so what that means is that we will take our money and then do other advertisements and employ any other Kenyan out there,” Oluga said.
Likewise, he added, “If you are the same person, we are transitioning from an agreement to a permanent and pensionable post; there is no gratuity.”
“The Public Service Commission, having looked at the extension, said it is not fair to have these contracts in this manner; hence, it considered having a gratuity for them,” Oluga noted.
Oluga further gave more light on the hiring process and what was agreed to by both parties at the time of hiring.
“The contract was for three years, and then the government found out that they still needed more workers, so the government said, Let us extend this by another year, so that was still the same contract,” Oluga said.
Duale remarks on UHC employees
Worth noting, Oluga’s remarks were sparked just after Cabinet Secretary for Health Aden Duale stated that he will refer to the EACC cases of thousands of ghost health workers under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme.
Duale on Friday, August 1, 2025, stated that the ministry is currently carrying out a vetting and verification exercise, which should be completed by next week, after which the genuine ones will be hired on permanent and pensionable terms.
“I have the money from Parliament to hire the UHC staff, but they should not harass me because we are yet to finish the vetting exercise,” said Duale.
On his part, from the current records, thousands of UHC workers were hired irregularly and were earning illegally, and their cases may be handled by the EACC.