Software hitch affects payroll
About 600 workers at City Hall have missed their salaries since August due to a software problem experienced during the on-going head count.
The workers, most of them those in the lower cadre levels are said to have missed various documents including identity cards.
The hitch occurred after the software only captured details of a certain ethnic community meaning others were left out.
The error was said to have been caused by the software which city hall sources confide was being used in such an exercise for the first time.
Most of those affected are those who do not have identity cards, raising questions how such workers were able to transact other businesses.
Integrity of audit
The hitch has forced the Nairobi County Workers Union to question the integrity of the process and called for its review.
“Human errors can occur when keying in data. There should be no room for mistakes because such actions have serious impact on the families of the staff,” said the union secretary general Festus Ngari.
While Mr Ngari said staff audits were key to ensure quality service, he said the exercise was needless because it had been dome so many times.
“We think this head count is a prank to have money spent. Every year, we are counted. What is so difficult about auditing staff once and for all?” posed Mr Ngari
He said there were accuracy and reliability bottle necks in the exercise and that it was too tedious.
For several weeks, now, the directorate of Human Resources at City Hall has been busy with its head Halima Bakari moving to reassure panicky staff.
In the audit, workers are supposed to produce their letter of appointments and a letter from their immediate supervisors.
They are also supposed to be physically accompanied by their bosses for positive identification.
Mr Ngari said it was becoming cumbersome for workers to appear before the human resource officers without proper schedules.
“Everyone comes up here without a schedule and this is also affecting work. We need a more organized way of presenting documents,” said Mr Ngari.