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{
    "id": 1121760,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1121760/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 176,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Gideon Keter",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13168,
        "legal_name": "Gideon Keter",
        "slug": "gideon-keter"
    },
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker. I beg to reply and thank Members for supporting the Employment (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and for having the best interest of the youth at heart. As Members may recall, before the introduction of this Amendment Bill, job seekers were tasked with the responsibility of running criminal background checks on themselves so as to secure a mere job interview. However, a cure has now come through this Amendment Bill whereby an employer shall no longer perceive you as a criminal before you apply for a job. The solution to all these bottlenecks is that an employer will no longer ask you to produce clearance documents from Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Director of Criminal Investigation (DCI), Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), Credit Reference Bureau (CRB) and Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) until or unless an offer of employment is in the offing. I have noted that Members have shown great interest in this Bill. As it moves to the next stage, be rest assured that your suggestions and recommendations will be given utmost consideration. Allow me to add a few remarks before I conclude. Job seeking should not be an adventure where you must prove that you are not a criminal or have not engaged in any crime in the past. This country is not graduating criminals from universities and colleges every year. These young men and women are more than ready to offer their skills and knowledge for the advancement of this nation's greatness. Public funded institutions should never be cash cows. From research done by the Parliamentary Budget Office, these institutions have been collecting over Kshs750 million every year from job seekers. This is a clear indication that for many years, they have been taking advantage of job seekers, mostly graduates but no single cent has been sent directly to youth empowerment programmes. Sadly, for example, there is nothing to show that these monies have been sent to HELB to boost its kitty. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, we should pick some of the best practices from other countries that have relieved their graduates from this financial burden. For example, in the United Kingdom (UK), it is only when you become successful in an interview and you are offered a job that your employer is required to carry out a series of employment checks depending on the type of job you will be undertaking. In the United States of America (USA), states like Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, and Vermont have enacted laws that expressly prohibit employers from requiring applicants to pay for their own background checks. In Iowa, for example, the law makes employers responsible for paying for criminal history checks by running through the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI). In Louisiana, employers are required to cover expenses for criminal background checks, other searches and checks made on applicants or existing employees. Hon. Members, in conclusion, let us, first, give the graduates jobs then we ask for these documents. Let them earn money first to afford paying for these documents, if they must. The young men and women should not be punished for looking for jobs. Job seeking is ever a daunting task in this country. Let us not make it unbearable by adding an extra financial burden for people who are already penniless. Let these institutions do background checks if they want to but that The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}