Preparing RecruitFinds
Loading the next page.
7 Oct 2026
By RecruitFinds
Losing your job through redundancy can be one of the most difficult career situations to experience. Unlike resigning or leaving because of poor performance, redundancy normally happens because an employer no longer needs a particular position or is changing how the business operates.
A company may restructure, close a department, reduce its workforce, merge functions or cut costs. When your position is affected, it does not necessarily mean you performed badly.
For a Kenyan employee, however, being told that your position has been made redundant should not be the end of the process. You need to understand what your employer is required to do, what payments you may be entitled to receive, which documents you should obtain and how to begin rebuilding your career.
The first thing to establish is why your employment is ending.
Redundancy generally concerns the employer's operational requirements and the loss of a job, office or occupation. Kenyan courts have described redundancy as involuntary loss of employment through no fault of the employee, where the employer initiates the termination because the position or services are no longer required.
That distinction matters.
If your employer says your position has been eliminated because of restructuring, downsizing or another operational change, the situation should be handled under the redundancy provisions of the Employment Act.
It is therefore important to keep the letter or communication explaining the reason for your termination.
Section 40 of Kenya's Employment Act sets out conditions an employer must meet when terminating employment because of redundancy.
Where an employee belongs to a trade union, the employer is required to notify the union and the relevant labour officer of the reasons and extent of the intended redundancy at least one month before the intended termination date.
For an employee who is not a union member, the employer must notify the employee personally in writing and notify the labour officer.
The employer must also apply appropriate selection considerations, including seniority, skill, ability and reliability among employees in the affected class.
This is important because an employer should not simply choose employees arbitrarily while describing the exercise as restructuring. Kenyan courts have repeatedly treated the requirements under Section 40 as mandatory.
When calculating what you are owed, do not look only at the severance figure.
A redundancy package can involve several separate components.
Depending on your circumstances, you may need to account for:
Salary owed up to your final working day
Notice or salary in lieu of notice
Payment for accrued annual leave
Severance pay
Other contractual benefits that have become due
Any other amounts properly payable under your employment contract or applicable agreement
Section 40 specifically provides for payment of outstanding leave in cash, at least one month's notice or one month's wages in lieu of notice, and severance of not less than 15 days' pay for every completed year of service.
Do not automatically assume that the amount described by your employer as your "final package" is correct. Ask for a written breakdown.
The statutory minimum under Section 40 is 15 days' pay for each completed year of service.
A simplified example can make this easier to understand.
Suppose your monthly salary is KSh 60,000 and you have completed five years of service.
Using a simple 30-day monthly calculation:
15 days' pay = KSh 60,000 ÷ 30 × 15
That gives:
KSh 30,000 per completed year
For five completed years:
KSh 30,000 × 5 = KSh 150,000
So the illustrative statutory minimum severance would be KSh 150,000.
This is only an example. Your actual calculation can depend on the applicable employment terms and the facts of your case. The statutory wording is a minimum, so a contract or collective agreement may provide more favourable terms.
These are different payments.
Notice pay relates to the notice period required when employment ends.
Severance pay is compensation associated with redundancy and is calculated according to completed years of service under Section 40.
For example, if you are entitled to one month's salary in lieu of notice and also qualify for severance, receiving the notice payment does not automatically eliminate the severance entitlement.
Kenyan courts have treated notice pay, accrued leave and severance as separate components of redundancy dues.
Your annual leave balance is another area worth checking.
If you have accrued leave that remains unpaid when you are declared redundant, Section 40 provides for it to be paid in cash.
Before signing your final settlement, compare the leave balance shown by your employer with your own records.
Look at:
Previous payslips
Leave applications
HR records
Emails confirming leave
Your employment contract
Any final dues statement
If the figures do not match, ask HR to explain the difference before signing documents that may affect your ability to dispute the calculation later.
Losing your job does not mean your NSSF membership simply disappears.
NSSF states that you remain a member even when you lose your job. If you are no longer contributing through an employer, your previous savings remain in the Fund, and NSSF says you can continue making contributions.
It is also important not to assume that losing a job automatically means you can immediately withdraw all your NSSF savings.
NSSF's current benefits information sets specific eligibility requirements for its different benefits. For example, its withdrawal benefit is tied to members who are at least 50 years old and have retired from regular paid employment.
So redundancy and NSSF withdrawal are not the same thing.
Keep your NSSF records and make sure your contribution history is properly maintained.
Before leaving your employer, make sure you obtain the documents you will need for your next job.
One of the most important is your certificate of service.
Section 51 of the Employment Act requires an employer to issue a certificate of service when employment ends, except where employment lasted less than four consecutive weeks. Kenyan courts have reiterated this requirement.
Your certificate of service is different from a recommendation letter.
It provides an official record of your employment and can be useful when applying for another position.
Also keep copies of:
Your employment contract
Redundancy letter
Final payslip
Final dues calculation
Certificate of service
Relevant performance records
Professional certificates
Training certificates
Do not wait until months later to discover that an important document is missing.
Not every termination labelled "redundancy" automatically complies with the law.
For example, questions may arise if the employer failed to provide the required notices, did not follow appropriate selection criteria, failed to pay statutory dues or otherwise did not follow the redundancy process.
Kenyan courts have emphasised that the Section 40 requirements are mandatory.
If you believe the process was unlawful or that your dues were not properly paid, keep all documentation and consider getting advice from a qualified employment lawyer, union representative or appropriate labour office before signing away your rights.
Do not rely solely on advice from colleagues who may have experienced a completely different employment situation.
Once the financial and employment paperwork is handled, your attention needs to move toward finding your next opportunity.
One of the biggest concerns after redundancy is:
"Will recruiters think I was fired?"
You can address this clearly.
You do not need to hide the fact that your role ended because of restructuring.
On your CV, you can simply list the position, employer and dates as normal.
For example:
Operations Officer — ABC Company
January 2022 – August 2026
Then focus your CV on what you achieved rather than writing a long explanation about the redundancy.
If you are asked during an interview why you left, you can say:
"My position was affected by a company restructuring exercise that resulted in several roles being eliminated. My departure was therefore due to redundancy rather than performance. I am now looking for an opportunity where I can apply my experience in operations and customer management."
Keep the explanation factual and move quickly to what you can offer the new employer.
Your CV is not a legal statement about how you lost your job.
Its primary purpose is to show why you are suitable for the next opportunity.
Instead of filling the CV with information about your redundancy, strengthen the sections that matter to recruiters.
Highlight:
Measurable achievements
Projects completed
Problems you solved
Systems you used
Teams you supported
Revenue or cost improvements
Customers managed
Processes improved
Leadership responsibilities
For example, instead of writing:
Responsible for customer service
you could write:
Managed customer enquiries across telephone and email channels and helped resolve service issues while maintaining accurate customer records.
The second version gives the recruiter evidence of what you actually did.
Being unemployed can create pressure to apply for every vacancy you see.
That approach can quickly become exhausting.
Create a routine.
Spend part of your week applying for suitable positions, but also use the available time to strengthen your marketability.
You could:
Update your CV
Improve your LinkedIn profile
Complete a relevant course
Build a professional portfolio
Contact former colleagues
Ask for references
Research employers
Practise interviews
Apply for remote positions
Explore contract or freelance work
The goal is to turn the period between jobs into a period of activity rather than simply waiting for another employer to call.
Redundancy can make people withdraw socially.
Try not to disappear.
Contact former colleagues, managers, clients and professional contacts.
You do not have to ask everyone directly for a job.
A simple message can let people know that you are available.
For example:
"Hi James, I hope you're doing well. I recently left my previous role following a restructuring exercise and I'm now exploring opportunities in operations and administration. If you come across anything suitable, I'd appreciate you keeping me in mind."
People cannot recommend you for opportunities they do not know you are seeking.
Your next opportunity does not necessarily have to look exactly like your previous one.
You might consider:
Permanent employment: Suitable if you want stability and a conventional career path.
Contract work: Can provide income and experience while you continue searching.
Remote work: Opens your search beyond employers in your immediate location.
Freelancing: Can provide an additional income stream based on your existing skills.
Consulting: May be suitable if you have substantial experience in a specialised field.
A career transition: Your redundancy may create an opportunity to move into an area you have wanted to explore.
The best option depends on your finances, skills and career objectives.
A redundancy payment can feel like a large amount of money when you first receive it.
Be careful about treating it as ordinary disposable income.
Before spending heavily, calculate how many months your available cash can support you.
List your essential expenses:
Rent or mortgage
Food
Utilities
Transport
School-related costs
Debt payments
Insurance
Communication
Other essential household expenses
Then identify expenses that can temporarily be reduced.
The objective is to give yourself enough time to search for suitable work rather than accepting the first poor offer because your money has run out.
Redundancy can affect confidence.
You may start questioning your abilities, especially if you worked for the same company for many years.
Remember that redundancy can happen because an employer is changing its structure or business requirements. Kenyan employment law itself recognises redundancy as a legitimate form of termination when the statutory requirements are followed.
Your previous experience has not disappeared because the position was eliminated.
You still have the knowledge, skills, professional relationships and achievements you built while working there.
The task now is to package those assets properly for the next employer.
If you have recently been declared redundant, do not try to solve everything in one day.
Start with the employment paperwork.
Week one: Confirm your final dues, collect your certificate of service and organise your employment records.
Week two: Rebuild your CV and LinkedIn profile around measurable achievements.
Week three: Contact professional networks and begin applying selectively.
Week four: Review your applications, identify weak areas and improve your interview preparation.
After that, establish a weekly routine that combines applications, networking, skills development and interview preparation.
Most importantly, do not measure your progress only by the number of applications you send.
A better measure is whether your CV is improving, your network is expanding, your interview skills are getting stronger and you are reaching employers who genuinely match your experience.
A redundancy can feel like the closing of a career chapter, but it can also become a point where you reassess what you want from your working life.
First, make sure your legal and financial position is properly handled. Understand your notice, leave and severance entitlements, keep your employment documents and maintain your NSSF records.
Then shift your attention to the future.
Your CV should tell the story of what you accomplished, not simply the story of how your previous employment ended.
Approach employers with confidence, use your professional network, remain open to different forms of work and continue developing skills that are valuable in the Kenyan job market.
A redundancy may have ended one position, but it does not erase the career you built before it.
