Radio Africa Group legal officer files complaint against employer at Labour office

An employee of Radio Africa Group (RAG) has made a complaint against her employee at the Ministry of Labour and social protection. Linda Musita, who acts as the media house legal officer, has, as per the documents seen by Nairobi News, accused her employer of workplace harassment, retaliation and discrimination. Musita had separately accused the company of acting inappropriately towards her after she sent a formal request for a role reduction. Nairobi News reached out to Group Human Resource Manager for comment. She confirmed the matter 'will be handled internally'. In a demand letter she earlier sent to the company, Musita says she joined the media house in 2013 as a junior sub-editor. She would rise through the ranks to initially perform the double roles of a sub-editor and Star Legal officer. She was eventually promoted to the ranks of Star Legal Officer, and Radio Africa Group Legal Officer/Head of Legal, in that order. But then, challenges cropped up when she approached the management for discussions over when staffers would resume receiving their full pay after salary cuts had been effected during the Covid-19 pandemic. "Our client did not get a direct answer on when the full pay will be restored. Instead, she was profiled and spoken to in a humiliating and demeaning manner for being a single parent," the letter by Namachanja Wambulwa and Co. Advocates read in part. Musita adds that she was later diagnosed with 'gastritis and generalized anxiety disorder, a condition she attributed to the challenges she received. She has asked the company's management to assign her another line manager and institute investigations and possible disciplinary proceedings against the Group Human Resource Manager. But Radio Africa Group, in its formal response, says it has a structure to handle such matters, and will only respond to Musita's claims through the Human Resource Manuals and Employee Handbook. This stand-off comes nine months after another employee namely Shaffie Weru sued the company for Sh150 million compensation, citing unlawful termination of his contract.