Injured at work in Kenya: compensation under WIBA

Your right to compensation

An employer is liable to pay compensation under the Act to an employee injured while at work (section 10(2)). Compensation includes medical aid and any other benefit under the Act (section 2).

There is one exclusion: no compensation for an accident caused by the employee's deliberate and wilful misconduct, unless it led to serious disablement or death (section 10(3)). Travel to or from work in a vehicle the employer provides for that purpose counts as part of the job (section 10(5)).

Every employer must insure its liability under the Act with an approved insurer (section 7(1)). Not doing so is an offence.

Report the accident at once

• Tell your employer about the accident, in writing if you can (section 21). In a fatal accident, a copy goes to the Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services within twenty four hours.
• The employer must report the accident to the Director within seven days of learning about it (section 22(1)), even if it thinks the injury did not happen at work (section 22(2)).
• You can ask the employer for a copy of its report (section 22(3)), and you can report the accident to the Director yourself at any stage (section 22(5)).

Claim within twelve months

A claim must be lodged within twelve months of the accident, or of the death (section 26(1)). If it is late, it can still be considered if the accident was reported as section 21 requires (section 26(2)).

Once the Director lodges a claim against the employer or insurer, they must settle it within ninety days, and the Director must pay you within thirty days of receiving the money (section 26(4) and (5)). An employer or insurer that fails to pay commits an offence punishable by a fine of up to KSh 500,000, up to a year in prison, or both (section 26(6)).

How compensation is worked out

• Temporary disablement: if the injury keeps you off work for three days or longer, a periodical payment equal to your earnings, within limits set by the Cabinet Secretary, for as long as the disablement lasts but not more than twelve months (section 28). It is not paid for days you receive full pay under the Employment Act.
• Permanent disablement: calculated on the basis of ninety six months' earnings, within set minimum and maximum amounts, according to the degree of disablement in the First Schedule (section 30).
• Death: compensation to dependants under the Third Schedule, plus reasonable funeral expenses (section 34).
• Medical expenses: the employer pays reasonable costs of treatment, nursing, medicines, travel for treatment in Kenya, and artificial limbs or other appliances (section 47).

Keep this record from day one

• Date, time and place of the accident, what you were doing and who saw it.
• Medical notes, sick sheets and receipts.
• A copy of your written notice to the employer and of the employer's report.
• Payslips showing your earnings before the accident.

If your employer refuses to report the accident, report it yourself to the Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health Services. This guide is general information, not legal advice for your situation.

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