French exit from Telkom still on hold, workers contest dismissal
Former Telkom Kenya employees in court for the hearing of their compensation case against the company in 2013. A labour court has stopped the sale of firm’s shares to Helios until dispute with union on terms of laying off of 500 workers is determined. PHOTO | FILE
The planned takeover of Telkom Kenya Ltd by the British private equity firm Helios Investment Partners has run into trouble, further delaying France Telecom’s exit from the Kenyan market.
The French conglomerate, which is shutting down its non-profitable business operations in East Africa, has become embroiled in a fresh dispute with the workers’ union over the sacking of about 500 employees — both unionised and non-unionisable — across all departments in Telkom, which operates the Orange mobile phone network.
