KMPDU marks 2025 as a defining year in the long struggle to restore dignity, fairness, and stability in the medical profession. The gains recorded in 2025 year did not come easily. They were earned through unity, sacrifice, sustained engagement, and, where necessary, industrial action.
For years, doctors have endured delayed pay, insecure contracts, stalled promotions, and broken promises. In 2025, we forced a shift.
One of the most significant victories was the restoration of full CBA-compliant pay for intern doctors. Interns posted in August 2025 received their full salaries and arrears following the agreement signed in December 2024. More importantly, the current cohort of interns is now being paid correctly from the very first month of posting, a historic correction to an injustice that had been normalized for far too long. Work is work, and doctors must be paid for it.
We also closed a painful chapter by securing the payment of seven years of basic salary arrears. Over 5,000 doctors finally received what they were owed, proof that persistence works and that no injustice is permanent when workers remain organized.
Career stagnation has equally been confronted. Across counties, national institutions, and referral hospitals, thousands of doctors have been promoted, restoring progression pathways that had been frozen for years. Specialist training, which had been effectively stalled since 2017, was re-opened, with hundreds of postgraduate fees approved and paid. Training is not a privilege; it is the backbone of a functional health system.
Job security also took a major step forward. Over 1,000 doctors were converted from contract terms to Permanent and Pensionable positions, reducing the culture of disposable labour that had taken root in public healthcare. At national institutions such as Kenyatta National Hospital, doctors who were previously underpaid and insecure now have structured contracts with improved remuneration and protections.
Throughout the year, we remained firm on statutory compliance. Deductions affecting doctors’ welfare, including health insurance, must be remitted on time, and we pushed for reforms to ensure this happens predictably and transparently.
These gains were achieved in a year that also saw multiple industrial actions, each rooted in unresolved grievances and broken commitments. Yet in every instance, unity prevailed. Salaries were restored, victimization was resisted, and doctors returned to work with their rights intact. This is what organised labour looks like.
As we move forward, our work is far from finished. Our focus now is on:
Finalizing and implementing a new CBA that reflects present realities
Employing at least 2,000 doctors to address critical shortages
Ensuring seamless, timely intern postings
Securing fair salary adjustments across all cadres
The lesson of 2025 is clear: when doctors stand together, systems move.
We remain committed to defending every gain, pursuing every promise to its conclusion, and ensuring that no doctor (intern, registrar, consultant, or specialist) is left behind.
Unity works . Dignity is non-negotiable . The struggle continues.
