Ebola Scare: Teacher Opts To Resign After Visiting Kenya. Was it Necessary?

By Jane Okoth

The deadly Ebola fever has claimed thousands of lives in West Africa is also causing anxiety in Kenya though we are completely free of the virus.

That might not be the case apparently an article by the courier-journal.com read that Susan Sherman a teacher at St. Margaret Mary Catholic School who had recently returned from a mission trip to Kenya has resigned.

According to the article, the school had asked the teacher to take a paid “precautionary leave” of absence of 21 days upon her return from her trip after “strong parent concerns” about Ebola.

It also asked Sherman, who is a registered nurse, to provide a doctor’s note stating she was in good health causing her to hand over her resignation.

We cannot also forget to mention about the 10 Kenyans who recently returned from Ebola torn Liberia.

There was a growing concern of Kenyans who asked for the individuals to be quarantined before mingling with others but the government confirmed that they were all free from the virus.

The big question is how do you view this Ebola crisis and will it affect the working relation if one of the individuals was your workmate?

“That cannot affect my working relationship at all if the person happens to be my colleague.

Not everybody who lives in Liberia has the disease and it would be ignorant to isolate them, says Steven Wandera, a Banker at a Leading Banking Institution in East Africa.

“My main concern would be if they all followed the required medical procedures to ensure that they are free from the disease. It is unfortunate that someone was forced to resign because of sheer ignorance and this shows just how discriminative and biased some employers can be,” he concludes.

“As much as I would like to be fair to the individual who came from Liberia or West Africa, I also have to take precaution for my safety and the safety of other workers,” says Ruth Mutio, a Hotel Business Owner operating in the CBD.

“This is a complicated matter and as an employer, it is natural for me to be worried,” she says.

She also adds that “However, if a person does not exhibit any of the deadly symptoms, I would have no problem hiring them.”

“Ebola is real and it kills people. On the issue of Kenyans jetting in from Liberia, I would not want to associate with them,” says Simon Mutua, a Junior Accountant at a private school.

“Some scientists have claimed that the virus can stay in a human being for up to 21 days and that is enough to cause panic. Even if we are to work together, don’t you think it will affect our working performance and why would I want to risk putting myself in that position?” he asks.

Would you be comfortable working with someone who has just jetted in from an Ebola torn nation or much less would you hire them as an employer?

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