President Uhuru Kenyatta samples keg at an EABL plant under development in Kisumu on July 12, 2017 The Star A newly released annual report revealed details of Ksh36,000 worth of drinks a year offered as benefits to employees of East African Breweries Limited (EABL).
The programme costs the company around Sh58 million every year and is meant to give workers a first-hand experience of the company’s various brands.
Available as a Ksh3,000 monthly allowance, the benefits cannot be substituted for cash by staff members.
"All employees are eligible to receive a discretionary choice from a select product range to enable them to experience the company brands first hand.
"The value of the products is Sh3,000 per month. There is no cash alternative to product allowance and it is not a contractual benefit," the report released by EABL read in part. File image of workers on an EABL production line The Ruaraka-based company employs at least 1,600 people.
The drinks benefits are deliberately set at an amount meant to avoid payment of income taxes to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA).
As part of an expansion plan, EABL is developing a Sh15 billion brewery in Kisumu.
The plant is expected to create thousands of jobs directly and indirectly in the Western region.
It was built on the site of EABL’s old facility which closed in 2002 because of advancements in brewing technology. A section of the EABL plant under development in Kisumu