K24 Silently Begins Firing Journalists

However, Mediamax resorted to carrying out the exercise in a phased manner and...

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Dec 15, 2022 - 08:03 Updated: Dec 15, 2022 - 08:47
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K24 Silently Begins Firing Journalists
An image of K24 news studios. /FILE

The crisis of mass firings across Kenyan media houses has reached Mediamax Networks Limited, a company that owns K24 TV and is linked to former President Uhuru Kenyatta's family, which began sending home its journalists.

Sources privy to the happenings at the media house confirmed to Viral Tea that the exercise targeted staff across the board, including presenters and news anchors at the station.

However, Mediamax resorted to carrying out the exercise in a phased manner and away from the spotlight, compared to other media houses that have announced their intention to fire en masse through internal memos shared on social media.

Inside K24 news studios. /FILE

Viral Tea has learnt that over 50 journalists have been sent home, and among those heavily affected were working at K24 TV.

Another media platform, K24 Plus- its digital product- was also affected, with the entire team attached to the platform sent home.

Also hard-hit were the People Daily newspaper and Mijikenda's Msenangu FM radio station, with sources highlighting that the affected journalists have been summoned to the Human Resource (HR) office one at a time and handed their sacking letters.

Notably, this is not the first time Mediamax has been known to send crowds of its journalists home. In 2020, the media house at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country resorted to a mass firing exercise that included wiping clean K24 TV's entire newsroom, except for two.

HR used a Short Message Service (SMS) to fire the affected journalists, though details of it were leaked on social media, sparking an uproar.

"Hi. This is Maureen Wandera from HR. I am contacting you with regards to the redundancy notice issued on the 21st of May 2020. The notice period has expired. Unfortunately, your position has been affected by way of redundancy.

"I would like to invite you to Emory Hotel in Kileleshwa tomorrow, Monday 22, at 8:55 a.m. to discuss what this means to your employment. When you get to the hotel kindly ask for me. We thank you for your indulgence and cooperation in this matter," reads the message that was sent out on Sunday, June 21, 2020.

Among the popular names affected by the mass action included Rose Gakuo, Fred Indimuli, Eric Njoka, Sam Njoroge, Karen Karimi, Isabella Kituri, Nancy Onyancha, Caren Kibbett, Shon Osimbo, Sara Adams, Joy Kariuki, Joab Mwaura and Tony Khwalanda. Some of them have since moved on to other media houses.

The likes of Standard Group, Nation Media Group, Radio Africa and Capital FM have since threatened to send many of their employees home.

Despite Capital FM stopping its planned salary cuts to employees from December 2022, the radio station, under Capital Group, hinted at joining the rest of the media houses in a mass firing exercise.

"The reality is that even after engaging in consultation with employees, only 7 members of staff out of 112 have consented to the proposed salary reductions. We are therefore unable to gain traction with this proposal put forward and in compliance with the Employment Act, we are left with no option but to defer the proposal and radically rethink the future of our business," Capital Group Director Mary-Ann Musangi stated.

Presenters inside Capital FM studios during a past radio show. /FILE

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