News Analysis: Kessem Sugar Factory announces mass layoffs affecting over 1,100 employees, sparking protests among workers already struggling with displacement due to earthquake

By Yishak Endris @Yishak_Endris

Addis Abeba – Kessem Sugar Factory’s management has issued a preliminary warning about plans to lay off more than 1,100 employees in the coming months, raising “deep concerns” among workers already struggling with displacement caused by a series of seismic activities in the Afar region.

A factory worker, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, told Addis Standard that Kessem Sugar Factory posted a notice on 18 February, 2025, announcing the termination of employees’ contracts. “However, the factory later made a correction, stating that employees would receive a preliminary notice of contract termination within one to three months, depending on their length of service,” he revealed.

The notice, posted on the factory’s announcement board and reviewed by Addis Standard, states that due to “significant damage to the factory’s property caused by repeated earthquakes” and the resulting “complete suspension of operations,” the employment contracts of the listed workers will be terminated with prior notice, effective 18 February, 2025.

However, the factory later revised this decision, informing employees—based on their tenure—that they would receive a notice period ranging from one to three months before their contracts are officially terminated, Addis Standard learned from the workers.

The factory worker explained that the termination timeline is structured according to each employee’s length of service. “For example, those who have worked for less than five years were given a one-month notice; those who worked between five and ten years received two months; and those who have worked for more than ten years were allotted a three-month notice period,” he disclosed.

Another employee, who had worked in various departments of the factory for 11 years, criticized the decision as “ill-timed and inconsiderate of employees’ circumstances.”

He pointed out that the termination notice came at a time when workers were completely unprepared, with many still sheltering in temporary housing due to the recent earthquake.

“I am the head of a family with three children,” he stated. “At this time, our minds are focused on the earthquake, and we did not expect such a sudden decision.”

He added that factory employees were already enduring significant hardships due to their displacement following a series of seismic activities in the area. “At the very least, if such a decision had to be made, the management should have considered the workers’ situation,” he emphasized. “Instead, they simply decided to let us go.”

Reports indicate that recent earthquakes in the Afar region have caused significant damage to the Kesem Sugar Factory, located in the Dulesa district.

According to Ali Hussein, the factory’s general manager, the facility sustained “moderate to severe” damage, including the collapse of the power distribution building, cracks across the sugarcane fields, and damage to both warehouses and residential areas.

In January 2025, Addis Standard reported that more than 58,000 individuals, including 4,000 Kesem Sugar Factory workers, have sought refuge in temporary shelters and are receiving humanitarian assistance following their displacement by recurring earthquakes in the Dulesa and Awash Fentale districts of the Gabi Rasu Zone.

Belay Abebe (name changed for security reasons), another factory worker, told Addis Standard that many employees have been living under makeshift tents at the “New Vision” shelter in Awash Arba since 29 December, 2024, after being displaced by the earthquake in the Afar region. However, he stated that they recently learned Kessem Sugar Factory had issued a notice terminating the employment contracts of 1,100 workers.

This worker, whose name appeared on the termination list, further revealed that following negotiations between the workers’ association and factory management, the initial notice was revised. “As a result, employees were informed that their contracts would end within a period of up to three months, depending on their tenure,” he added.

Emphasizing that he has a family to support, the worker noted that he has been employed at the factory for approximately 11 years.

“No one has approached us to check on our condition or even to ask what we need,” he stated. “The workers are now left in confusion and uncertainty.”

Getahun Arsiicho, chairman of the Kessem Sugar Factory Workers’ Union, confirmed to Addis Standard that the factory has announced the termination of employment contracts for 1,135 permanent employees and 34 contract employees, effective 18 February, 2025. The termination will be carried out over a period of up to three months, depending on each employee’s length of service.

“Currently, the employees are in a state of distress,” said Getahun, expressing disappointment that the decision was made despite the availability of alternative solutions.

He argued that options considered for employees of other sugar factories—such as Wolkait, Tendaho, and Arjo Dedessa, which were closed due to man-made problems—should also have been explored for Kessem Sugar Factory workers.

Furthermore, Getahun pointed out that the factory, with access to 20,000 hectares of land, sufficient water from the Kessem Dam, and a favorable climate, could have allowed workers to engage in short-term cash crop farming to sustain themselves until production resumed. “Terminating their employment under these circumstances,” he stressed, “was unjustified.”

Getahun added that the workers’ union has written letters to the Ethiopian Trade Unions Confederation and other relevant bodies. “The union will continue its efforts to find a resolution,” he emphasized.

Addis Standard recently reported that more than 200 workers at the Tana Beles Sugar Factory are protesting their reassignment to temporary employment and manual labor positions. The workers revealed that this demotion and reassignment to daily labor roles occurred following the implementation of a new organizational structure one month ago.

Addis Standard‘s efforts to interview the management of Kessem Sugar Factory were unsuccessful. AS