The Employment and Labour Relations Court has officially closed a petition challenging recruitment and promotion criteria within the Kenya Prisons Service after parties informed the court that the dispute had been settled.

The case, filed by Peter Agoro, had challenged a recruitment advert for cadet officers, professionals, artisans and technicians, arguing that the criteria unfairly discriminated against serving prison officers who upgraded their academic qualifications while in service.

The matter came before Dr Jacob Gakeri, who directed that the case be marked as settled and the file closed.

In court filings, Paul Famba admitted that the recruitment notice introduced a Master’s degree requirement for promotion to the rank of Inspector of Prisons, contrary to the 2014 Revised Scheme of Service for Prisons Uniformed Personnel, which only requires a bachelor’s degree.

Agoro had urged the court to compel compliance with the existing scheme of service and sought the removal of the Master’s degree requirement for officers seeking promotion into Inspectorate ranks.

The petitioners also wanted qualified serving officers who earned bachelor’s degrees while in service to be prioritised for promotion in line with Article 232 of the Constitution.

The case has now been formally settled and closed  by the court.