An investigation of the effect of labour law concessions on stakeholders in Kenyan garment export processing zones

Kariuki, Simon Mwanga

An investigation of the effect of labour law concessions on stakeholders in Kenyan garment export processing zones

dc.contributor.advisor	Smith, N.J.
dc.contributor.author	Kariuki, Simon Mwanga
dc.date.accessioned	2025-11-14T06:41:10Z
dc.date.available	2025-11-14T06:41:10Z
dc.date.issued	2004
dc.degree.level	Doctoral
dc.degree.name	Doctor of Commerce in Business Management
dc.departmentName	Business Management
dc.description	Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Administration and Law to fulfil the requirements for the Doctor of Commerce in Business Management at the University of Zululand, South Africa.
dc.description.abstract	At the moment Kenya is experiencing high unemployment rates, over-reliance on unprocessed commodity exports, few foreign direct investment inflO\vs and low technological capacities. The establishment of Export Processing Zones (EPZs) has been seen as a way of helping the country overcome some of these challenges. However, the incentives that have accompanied the EPZ scheme, particularly the ceding of labour legislation by the Kenya government to EPZ investors, has created EPZ employer-employee labour relations hostilities (a labour relations gap). The purpose of this study was to establish the state of employer-employee labour relations in Kenyan garment EPZs. This was done by establishing the factors that influence the perceptions of EPZ workers towards the state of their working conditions. This study further explored the effect of labour law exemItions on EPZ investors, their employees and the Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA). It further explored the effectiveness of existing communication and dispute settlement structures in the EPZ workplace. The survey method was largely used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. The respondents of the survey included EPZ employers, their employees and the EPZA. Three sets of questionnaires were used to collect data One questionnaire was distributed to EPZ employers; the second to EPZ employees and the third was distributcd to the EPZA. The collected data was then anaIyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Scieoces (SPSS) program. The study found that the factors that significantly affected Kenyan EPZ employers and their employees' attitudes towards the state of their working conditions were: age, gender, marital status, employment status, work section, leadership position in a company, salary scale and the location of an EPZ company in a public or pivate ZOll. The study also found that employment discrimination and the state of the worlcing relationships in Kenyan gannent EPZs had big employer-employee labour relations' gaps. Besides, the worlcing facilities in Kenyan EPZs were relatively of high quality. The EPZ employer-employee training gap was fmmd not to be large, while the employer-employee remuneration and interpersonal relationship gaps were found to be slightly above the occeptable le..els. In addition, the study also found that employee strikes and negative publicity were the main problems EPZ investors encountered for being exempted from the minimum wage act and the factories act. Unions, politicians and Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) were the major groups/organizations that censured EPZ operators for being exempted from labour laws. The closer EPZ investors are located to each other, the more they influenced each other's employer-employee labour relations. The findings of the study also revealed that EPZ employees found unions, the EPZA and codes of conduct as ineffective employer-employee regulatory instruments, although some employers found these three regulatory instruments to be effective. Apart from the existing EPZ employer-employee regulatory structures the three groups also consulted the ministJy of labour, when they found it difficult to resolve employer-employee worlcing conditions' related problems amongst themselves in the zones. Furthermore, the findings established that the maJOflty of employee-employer communication in the zones revolves around wages. The majority of the EPZ employees channelled their working conditions' grievances to their employers via workers committees and strikes/go slows, while the majority of employers use workers committees and open meetings to address their workers. Regarding the effectiveness of their communication channels, the majority of the sampled employees indicated that their communication channels were effective. This is a view that their employers also concurred with. Finally, the study found that the three groups (employers, their employees and the EPZA) suggested that the use of general alternative EPZ employer-employee regulato!)' instrumerts (the government, NGOs, unions and institutions of higher learning), trade instrumerts (preferential trade agreements and codes of conduct) and other instruments (existing laws, arbitration and unions) could ensure that EPZ working conditions improved. The majority of workers indicated that their employer-employee working relationships could be improved with a better EPZ employment structure; improvement of employer-employee communication structures. Employees also felt that educating them on their labour rights, on the roles unions play, along with more EPZA support and better remuneration structures were required as basic working conditions that would be deemed satisfacto!)' to them. To minimize employer-employee hostilities (reduce the employer-employee labour relations gap) the study has recommended that EPZ employers, their employees and the EPZA adopt a compliance measuri~ instrument, to constantly evaluate their labour relations gaps, adopt a step by step dispute resolution approacWsystem to solve their working conditions' problems and a higher productivity code of conduct.
dc.faculty	Faculty of Commerce, Administration and Law
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10530/58195
dc.language.iso	en
dc.subject	Export processing zones
dc.subject	Unemployment
dc.subject	labor law and legislation
dc.subject	Kenya
dc.title	An investigation of the effect of labour law concessions on stakeholders in Kenyan garment export processing zones
dc.type	Doctoral Dissertations
dspace.entity.type	Publication
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relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication.latestForDiscovery	68293849-881d-4dcb-bc99-f84b574824e6