Equity Bank Staff In Kenya Reduces To 7,763, 2023-Sustainability Report Show

• Equity Bank Kenya's workforce decreased by 415 employees in 2023, bringing the total number of staff to 7,763, down from 8,178 in 2022, according to the bank's sustainability report
• Other subsidiaries, such as those in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, also saw marginal declines in employee numbers during the same period
• Despite the overall reduction in staff, Equity Bank Kenya hired 1,123 new employees in 2023, though this was about half the number recruited in 2022

Elijah Ntongai, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, has more than three years of financial, business, and technology research expertise, providing insights into Kenyan and global trends.

Equity Bank Kenya saw a reduction in its workforce, according to the recently released 2023 sustainability report.

The sustainability report shows that the number of employees fell by 415 to 7,763 in 2023, down from 8,178 in 2022.

This trend was also mirrored in some of the bank’s other subsidiaries, such as those in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, which experienced marginal drops in employee numbers over the same period.

Despite the overall decrease, the bank’s Kenyan arm continued to generate new employment opportunities, hiring 1,123 new staff members, about half of the number recruited in 2022.

However, the South Sudan subsidiary saw minimal growth, with only six new employees added, reducing the total workforce there to 122 from 127 in 2022.

By the end of 2023, Equity Group’s total employee count rose to 13,102, up from 13,065 in 2022.

"We ensure that our employees have the right skill sets and right toolsets to deliver on their mandates. Back-office functions also need to enable and partner with the market facing teams to win in the marketplace. We continue to review and enhance our employee value proposition for superior competitiveness in the market and for talent retention as well as engagement" Equity Group emphasised in the report.

Gender diversity

The report also highlighted that 41.3% of the group’s permanent staff were women, with 27% of them in senior management roles and 34.8% in general management positions.

Equity Group subsidiaries in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, Rwanda, DRC, and Ethiopia.

These subsidiaries reported significant strides in gender diversity, especially in Tanzania and Uganda, where the gender ratio of male to female employees stood at 51:49.

South Sudan, however, lagged behind, with a 69:31 ratio of male to female employees.

In addition to workforce changes, the bank is focusing on addressing pay parity across all its subsidiaries.

The current gender pay gap stands at an average of 1:1.25, an improvement from 1:1.32 in the previous year.

“Key challenges in addressing the pay parity gap include the higher number of men in senior positions, many of whom have served longer than their female counterparts in similar roles,” the report noted.

The bank is taking measures to close this gap by introducing gender-balanced shortlists during recruitment, adjusting internal salaries during review cycles, and hiring more women for senior management positions.

Equity employs over 1 million people

In other related news, the Equity Bank report showed that it has employed more than one million people under the Young Africa Works Programme.

The lender recruited 1,266,182 workers under the programme across its subsidiaries in Africa in 2023, compared to 375 new staff reported in 2022.

The Group also established an Employee Share Ownership Programme with 198,614,463 ordinary shares at KSh 0.5 each, which amounts to 5% of the Company's share capital.