Kenyan Labour Law Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends HR Managers, Employee Relations Specialists and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-LR-026

Before you join: Participants should have practical exposure to HR administration, line management, employee relations, payroll, legal support or workforce supervision in Kenya.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Kenyan employers face material risk when managers handle contracts, pay, discipline, redundancy, union relations or termination without following statutory procedure. A poorly documented hearing, incorrect redundancy selection process, unlawful deduction or mishandled grievance can result in Employment and Labour Relations Court claims, reinstatement orders, compensation awards and damaged employee relations. HR professionals and line managers need to apply the law consistently while maintaining workable employment relationships.

This course examines the Kenyan employment-law framework governing the employment relationship, from recruitment and contract formation through wages, leave, performance management, discipline, termination and dispute resolution. Participants work with the Employment Act, 2007, Labour Relations Act, 2007, Labour Institutions Act, 2007, Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007, Work Injury Benefits Act, 2007 and relevant constitutional protections. They learn to distinguish misconduct from poor performance, conduct procedurally fair disciplinary hearings, manage redundancy, administer union recognition and collective bargaining, and prepare records that support defensible decisions.

The programme is delivered through concise instructor briefings, Kenya-based employment cases, document reviews, group analysis and simulated HR decisions. Participants examine realistic cases involving absenteeism, performance concerns, harassment complaints, union demands, payroll disputes and workforce restructuring. They leave with a practical Kenyan labour-law compliance pack containing templates, checklists, decision tools and a 90-day action plan for their workplace.

The course suits HR practitioners, managers and employee-relations personnel who already work with employment matters and need greater confidence applying Kenyan legal requirements to day-to-day decisions.

What you will be able to do

  • Interpret Kenyan employment statutes, constitutional rights and contractual obligations affecting workplace decisions
  • Draft compliant employment-contract clauses, probation records and variation documentation
  • Calculate statutory pay, leave, notice and final-dues obligations using employment records
  • Conduct procedurally fair investigations and Section 41 disciplinary hearings
  • Manage termination, redundancy and summary-dismissal processes using defensible documentation
  • Administer union recognition, collective bargaining and grievance procedures under the Labour Relations Act
  • Prepare dispute-resolution records for conciliation, settlement discussions and Employment Court matters
  • Build a labour-law compliance register and 90-day corrective action plan

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Make defensible employment decisions using Kenyan statutory tests and documented procedures
  • Handle disciplinary hearings with clearer evidence, employee representation and outcome records
  • Identify termination and redundancy risks before issuing employee communications
  • Advise managers on union, grievance and collective-bargaining obligations with greater confidence
  • Build a reusable set of HR compliance documents for daily employee-relations work

For your organisation

  • Reduce exposure to unfair-termination, discrimination and wage-related claims
  • Improve consistency of disciplinary, performance and grievance decisions across managers
  • Strengthen employment records needed for labour inspections, conciliation and court proceedings
  • Support lawful workforce restructuring, redundancy and separation processes
  • Improve union and employee relations through clearer procedures and communication

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can identify the legal sources, institutions and employment rights governing workplace decisions in Kenya.

  • Constitution of Kenya Article 41 rights and employment-law sources
  • Employment Act 2007 coverage, exclusions, definitions and mandatory terms
  • Labour Relations Act 2007 institutions, rights and dispute pathways
  • Labour Institutions Act 2007 inspection powers and enforcement functions
  • County and national labour administration roles in workplace compliance
  • Reading statutory provisions alongside contracts, CBAs and binding court decisions

Participants can classify employment relationships and prepare contract documentation that meets statutory requirements.

  • Written particulars required under Section 10 of the Employment Act
  • Fixed-term, indefinite, probationary and casual engagement classification tests
  • Drafting lawful job descriptions, hours, remuneration and leave clauses
  • Probation management: notice, extension consent and procedural records
  • Variation of contract terms through consultation, consent and documentation
  • Independent-contractor status assessed using control, integration and economic-reality indicators

Participants can administer statutory remuneration, working-time, leave and recordkeeping obligations.

  • Statutory minimum wages and wage-order classification for payroll decisions
  • Regular hours, overtime, rest days and public-holiday payment rules
  • Leave entitlements: annual, maternity, paternity, sick and compassionate leave
  • Lawful deductions, payslips, wage records and remittance obligations
  • Calculating notice pay, accrued leave and final employment dues
  • Equal remuneration and non-discrimination controls in reward administration

Participants can prevent and respond to discrimination, harassment and employee-data risks.

  • Protected grounds under Article 27 and Employment Act discrimination provisions
  • Harassment complaints: confidential intake, impartial inquiry and documented findings
  • Reasonable accommodation considerations for disability, religion and pregnancy
  • Recruitment controls preventing discriminatory criteria, questions and selection records
  • Gender, HIV status and pregnancy protections during employment decisions
  • Retaliation risk controls following complaints, reports and protected disclosures

Participants can conduct investigations and disciplinary processes that satisfy substantive and procedural fairness.

  • Misconduct, poor performance and incapacity distinguished before formal action
  • Show-cause letters stating allegations, evidence, response deadlines and consequences
  • Section 41 hearing procedure: notice, representation, response and deliberation
  • Investigation plans, witness interviews, evidence logs and confidentiality safeguards
  • Progressive discipline matrices linked to policies and comparable past cases
  • Reasoned outcome letters, appeal routes and defensible personnel-file records

Participants can manage lawful employment termination and separation processes with appropriate documentation.

  • Termination grounds under Sections 43, 45 and 47 of Employment Act
  • Redundancy procedure: consultation, notification, selection and severance calculations
  • Summary dismissal thresholds and the Section 44 gross-misconduct categories
  • Resignation, abandonment and mutual separation documented without coercion
  • Certificate of service, clearance and final-dues settlement requirements
  • Unfair termination remedies: reinstatement, compensation, notice and costs

Participants can administer lawful union engagement, recognition and collective-bargaining processes.

  • Freedom of association, union recognition and check-off deduction administration
  • Recognition agreements and simple-majority verification under Labour Relations Act
  • Collective bargaining agreement clauses, registration and legal effect
  • Good-faith bargaining preparation: mandates, proposals, costing and concession limits
  • Conciliation referrals, protected strikes and lockout restrictions
  • Grievance handling stages aligned with CBA and internal procedures

Participants can manage workplace disputes from internal grievance handling through formal resolution channels.

  • Internal grievance systems: receipt, investigation, response and escalation timelines
  • Labour officer conciliation, referral documents and settlement-record requirements
  • Employment and Labour Relations Court jurisdiction, limitation periods and remedies
  • Preparing pleadings support: chronology, documents, witnesses and issue lists
  • Without-prejudice settlement discussions, release terms and authority controls
  • Case-law tracking for consistent decisions and policy updates

Participants can connect employment relations obligations with safety, injury and employee-data requirements.

  • Occupational Safety and Health Act 2007 employer and employee duties
  • Work Injury Benefits Act reporting, compensation and return-to-work coordination
  • Safety committees, risk assessments and incident investigation records
  • Data Protection Act 2019 controls for employee and medical data
  • Workplace surveillance, monitoring notices and proportionate data collection
  • Alcohol, drugs and fitness-for-work policies within legal limits

Participants can audit labour-law controls and establish a practical employment-relations improvement plan.

  • Employment-law compliance register mapped to policies, records and responsible owners
  • HR file audits using statutory documentation and retention checklists
  • Manager decision trees for absence, discipline, grievances and termination
  • Union and employee communication plans during sensitive workplace changes
  • Board reporting indicators: claims, grievances, overtime, turnover and compliance gaps
  • 90-day labour-relations action plan with milestones and accountability

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Kenyan employment-contract compliance checklist
  2. Section 41 disciplinary hearing pack
  3. Redundancy process and selection checklist
  4. Workplace grievance-handling workflow
  5. Labour-law compliance register template
  6. 90-day employee-relations action plan

Who should attend

  • HR Managers — responsible for employment policy, employee relations and legal compliance
  • Employee Relations Specialists — managing grievances, discipline, unions and workplace disputes
  • HR Business Partners — advising managers on workforce decisions and employment risk
  • Line Managers — handling performance, conduct, absence and termination decisions
  • In-house Legal Counsel — supporting employment matters, investigations and dispute strategy
  • Payroll and HR Operations Managers — administering wages, leave, records and statutory deductions

Skills and tools covered

Employment contract complianceDisciplinary procedure managementTermination risk assessmentCollective bargaining administrationWorkplace dispute resolutionHR compliance auditing

Tools and standards

Employment Act, 2007, Labour Relations Act, 2007, Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007, Work Injury Benefits Act, 2007

How the course runs

Training methodology

Instruction combines short legal briefings with Kenya-based case analysis, document reviews, facilitated group work and decision simulations. Participants assess employment contracts, show-cause letters, hearing records, redundancy documents, grievance files and settlement terms against statutory requirements. Simulations focus on disciplinary hearings, employee grievances, union engagement and workforce-restructuring decisions. Facilitated discussions connect legal rules to operational HR choices, while application planning helps participants identify priority policy, process and recordkeeping improvements for their own workplace.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical exposure to HR administration, line management, employee relations, payroll, legal support or workforce supervision in Kenya. They should understand common workplace terms such as employment contract, probation, leave, disciplinary action and notice period. Prior study of Kenyan law is not required, and participants do not need to be lawyers. The course is designed for professionals who already encounter employment decisions and want a structured method for applying legal requirements, maintaining records and reducing avoidable disputes.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should have practical exposure to HR, people management, payroll, legal support or employee relations. No law degree or previous formal legal training is required.

Bring examples of employment policies, contract clauses or workplace issues you are permitted to discuss without disclosing confidential personal data. Course materials are provided, and participants may bring a laptop or tablet for reviewing templates and notes.

The course is intended for HR managers, HR business partners, employee-relations specialists, line managers, legal advisers and payroll leaders working in Kenya. It is particularly relevant to professionals who make or advise on employment decisions.

This course concentrates on Kenyan legal duties, procedural fairness, workplace documentation and dispute prevention. General HR courses may cover recruitment, talent, engagement and performance systems more broadly without examining statutory requirements in this depth.

Participants can use the contract, disciplinary, redundancy, grievance and compliance tools to review current HR practices. The final action plan identifies priority records, policies and manager guidance requiring attention within 90 days.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours, excluding breaks. The five days progress from legal foundations and contracts to discipline, termination, union relations, disputes and compliance planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

More courses in Labour Relations

Labour Relations Gender Equality and Employment Rights Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations HR Business Partner Skills Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Industrial Relations Negotiation and Arbitration Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Industrial Relations and Employee Relations Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Labour Inspection and Enforcement Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Labour Law and HR Compliance Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Managing Unionised Employees Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov Labour Relations Preventing Sexual Harassment Training Course 5 days · from USD 1,100 · next 16 Nov