There is a new complaint from workers at Sama Kenya, a company that helps with data tasks, claiming that employees are being made to work more hours than they agreed to, without permission from Meta, a big client.
An employee who is part of the GPL project, which is one of the last tasks with Meta, shared that workers have usually followed a work schedule of 7 hours and 24 minutes as agreed with Meta.
However, since the start of this year, management has started to push workers to take on extra shifts because some employees were fired and not replaced.
“The company is now making us work extra hours without Meta’s okay to make up for the workers who were let go,” the employee said. This pressure is coming from the site manager, Peter Karanja.
The same worker also mentioned that more people have been fired recently, often for small mistakes, and some were forced to take leave before they lost their jobs.
These complaints add to other issues at Sama Kenya, such as forced downsizing, unfair promotions, and bad behaviour from senior management.
Earlier this year, workers said employees were being encouraged to take annual leave, supposedly to keep things running smoothly, but then they were fired without warning.
Those who did not take leave faced pay cuts
Despite the serious effects on workers, management has not officially communicated about these matters, with updates being shared informally by a project manager.
Additionally, some workers pointed out a senior official, Bruce Gichimu, accusing him of promoting female employees while ignoring their male coworkers.
Employees claim that in one project he manages, out of about 14 reviewers, only two are men, which raises worries about unfairness in hiring and promotions.
Other complaints include reports of a harmful work environment, with at least five employees leaving the company this year out of frustration. Some chose to take unpaid leave instead of staying under these conditions.
One specific employee, Barzain, is said to have too much power over project assignments, allegedly giving better working conditions to people she knows personally.
She is accused of ignoring Sama’s internal rules, enjoying perks like working from home and flexible hours, while others face stricter rules.
Reports indicate that she often leaves the office for a long time with Bruce Gichimu, which raises questions about professionalism.
Sama Kenya often faces controversy
In 2023, the company was criticized after some former content moderators were fired when Meta ended its contract with them. These ex-employees are now taking legal action over their dismissals, which is still unresolved.
After the split with Meta, Sama shifted focus to AI training services, working with many clients in different fields like biotechnology, e-commerce, and self-driving cars.
However, the complaints from workers suggest that problems with transparency, fair treatment, and following client agreements still exist.
With new claims of forced overtime and labor issues, workers are now asking for accountability from Sama’s management.
They want all employees to be treated fairly and for workplace rules and agreements to be clearly communicated.
