Bidco, the consumer goods manufacturer, has pan-African ambitions, but at home in Kenya its workers can’t even afford to buy a bar of Bidco-produced soap – because their wages are too low.
“Bidco products are of good because of our hard work. But I cannot use them because they are very expensive,” one current Bidco worker said.
Another worker said he would be pleased to use Bidco products. “I actually like the products, but I don’t earn enough to buy them.”
The only opportunity workers get to try Bidco products is at the end of the year, during the holidays.
“We are only given samples at the end of the year – a half litre of oil, a bar soap and 200 grams of solid fat. That’s it – for the whole year,” said the first worker.
“Imagine how we work for a whole year so Vimal can earn a lot of money, but he returns so little to us,” the second worker said. “There’s nothing to appreciate in this job.”
