Protests at HBM Flowers Company Limited farm in Laikipia North
Employees at HBM Flowers allege verbal abuse, unpaid overtime, missing safety gear and withheld contracts — and are calling on the Ministry of Labour to act
By John Lorogoi
Workers at HBM Flowers Company Limited in Laikipia North have raised serious allegations of labour rights violations, hostile management, hazardous working conditions and discriminatory hiring practices, calling on government regulators to intervene before the situation deteriorates further.
At the heart of the complaints is what employees describe as a toxic workplace culture driven from the top. Staff allege they are routinely subjected to verbal abuse, intimidation and unfair treatment, creating an atmosphere of fear in which raising a grievance is more likely to invite victimisation than resolution. Workers have directed their sharpest criticism at the current site manager, calling for an immediate review of the manager’s conduct and demanding their removal as a precondition for restoring any meaningful trust between staff and management.
The day-to-day realities at the farm compound the problem. Employees say they are regularly required to work well beyond standard hours without receiving overtime pay — a practice they argue constitutes a direct violation of Kenya’s labour statutes. Heavy workloads and inadequate rest periods have left staff physically exhausted and increasingly stressed, raising legitimate concerns about their long-term health and wellbeing.
Safety standards on the ground appear to be equally strained. Workers report that the company routinely fails to provide basic Personal Protective Equipment and essential tools required for their daily duties, leaving them exposed to workplace hazards, chemical substances and the risk of occupational injury. In a flower farming environment where workers handle pesticides and other agrochemicals on a daily basis, the absence of protective gear is not a minor oversight — it is a serious occupational health risk.
Employees also allege that management withholds signed copies of their employment contracts after signing or renewal, leaving workers unable to verify their agreed terms of service or assert their statutory rights. Without physical documentation, challenging unlawful treatment becomes significantly harder — a vulnerability that, workers say, management appears content to exploit.
The discontent at HBM Flowers has spilled beyond the farm gates into the wider Laikipia North community. Local residents and community leaders have raised separate concerns about the company’s recruitment practices, alleging that qualified local job seekers are consistently bypassed in favour of outsiders. They are demanding a transparent and equitable hiring process that gives the host community a fair chance at employment on land that sits in their backyard.
HBM Flowers had not responded to a request for comment at the time of going to press.
The cumulative picture painted by workers and community members is of an operation under significant strain — one where management accountability, worker welfare and community relations have all, they say, been allowed to erode simultaneously. Employees and local leaders are now urging the Ministry of Labour and workplace safety regulators to conduct an urgent inspection, enforce statutory compliance and guarantee a fair and legal working environment for all staff.
For the workers of Laikipia North, the flowers may be blooming — but conditions inside the farm, they say, are far from rosy.
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