MPs Approves Bill On HELB And CRB Clearance Certificates For Job Seekers.
On Wednesday, MPs voted to approve a law that prohibits employers from obtaining clearance certificates from people they do not intend to hire.
The Employment (Amendment) Bill (No79) of 2019, sponsored by Nominated MP Gideon Keter, was passed by lawmakers.
The proposed legislation requires employers to conduct background checks on prospective employees after making an offer of employment.
Individuals seeking employment, particularly in government agencies, are typically required to provide clearance notices from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), Higher Education Loans Board, Credit Reference Bureau, Kenya Revenue Authority, and the Directorate of Criminal Investigation.
Keter introduced the Bill on the grounds that the majority of the unemployed are under the age of 35 and thus unable to afford clearance certificates required by employers for employment purposes.
“It is, therefore, necessary for an employer to require an applicant to submit the mandatory requirements as a condition for confirmation of employment,” he said.
Clearance certificates cost more than Sh5,000 for job seekers. Some of the certificates must be renewed annually for a fee of about Sh1,000.
The spotlight is now on President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is expected to sign the proposed law into the law.
An employer shall not require an employee for a contract of service to submit any clearance certificates for which payment is required in the recruitment process.
This is only true if the employer intends to enter into a written service contract with the employee.
“An employer who intends to enter into a written contract of service may, in compliance with Chapter Six of the Constitution, request an employee to submit mandatory clearance certificates from the relevant entities,” the proposed law reads.
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According to a Parliamentary Budget Office analysis, state agencies that issue clearance certificates to ensure compliance with Chapter Six of the Constitution net more than Sh750 million.
Keter contended that the fees were a rip-off because “public-funded institutions should never be cash cows.”
MPs Approves Bill On HELB And CRB Clearance Certificates For Job Seekers.
