Sustainable HRM practices in the Kenyan informal sector

Abstract

Kenya's informal sector employs the vast majority of workers but is fraught with challenges such as low pay, unsafe working conditions, and a lack of social protection. This chapter highlights how sustainable human resource management (HRM) can tackle these issues by focusing on developing and putting in place employment laws and policies that ensure fair wages, worker wellbeing, and environmental responsibility. It draws from global successes like India's Self-Employed Women's Association and Brazil's Bolsa Família programmes, which offer strategies to improve workers’ livelihoods, formalize informal businesses, and align their HRM strategies with Kenya's Vision 2030. By using empirical data collected through semi-structured interviews and sharing the real-life stories of workers, the chapter emphasizes the urgent need for fairer policies, better employee protection laws and policies, and a call for meaningful change in employee management in the informal sector in order to build a sustainable and inclusive economy.