Learning in public schools across Kenya faces a looming paralysis as the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) have issued a fresh strike threat. The unions are protesting the government’s failure to implement salary increments that were expected to take effect this month.
The planned industrial action by the teachers’ unions could severely disrupt the reopening of schools for the third term. On Tuesday, KUPPET joined KNUT in rallying their members to boycott work when schools open. KUPPET has announced plans to convene its National Governing Council (NGC) to deliberate on key issues, including mobilizing for a nationwide strike starting in September.
KUPPET has demanded that the government implement the second phase of the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which was supposed to take effect in July. “The union’s organs are being mobilized for a national strike from September to force full implementation of the 2021-2025 CBA, employment of 20,000 new teachers, and the conversion of 46,000 intern teachers into permanent and pensionable terms,” the union stated.
KNUT Secretary General Collins Oyuu emphasized that the CBA is a legal and binding document signed between the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and KNUT in 2021 and duly deposited in the Employment and Labour Relations Court. “There is no way the National Treasury, which is fully aware of the existence and content of the agreement, can backtrack on the CBA by failing to fund adequately TSC to meet its contractual obligations as regards implementing the 2021-2025 CBA,” Oyuu said last week.
The unions have also called for the unconditional restoration of the Sh10 billion that has been cut from the TSC budget, terming the reduction a violation of the CBA. “Teachers will not accept anything short of the second phase of the 2.5 percent to 9 percent salary increment as stipulated in the amended 2021-2025 CBA,” Oyuu asserted.
The unions have expressed outrage that teachers received their July payments without the deserved increment, which was already negotiated, signed, and deposited in the Industrial and Labour Relations Court. Furthermore, the government has cut Free Day Secondary School (FDSE) capitation funds by 24 percent, from Sh22,244 per learner per year to Sh17,000. This reduction comes despite repeated calls by principals and other education stakeholders for an upward review of capitation to offset the high inflation of the last seven years.
KUPPET accused the government of implementing the most ambitious rollback of social spending since independence, noting that the scale of cuts to the education budget has no parallels in history. “Even the infamous Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) forced on Kenya by the World Bank and the IMF in the mid-1980s did not result in the magnitude of cost deductions being made today,” the union stated.
Adding to the unions’ grievances, the government is also backtracking on its commitment to employ 20,000 new teachers and convert 46,000 intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms. This reversal compounds the already dire situation in the education sector, where schools are grappling with increased student enrollment and a significant teacher shortage.
As the unions prepare for potential industrial action, the future of education in Kenya hangs in the balance. The government’s response to these demands will be crucial in determining whether the third term will proceed smoothly or be marked by widespread disruptions. The teachers’ unions remain steadfast in their resolve to fight for their rights and ensure that the agreements made in the CBA are fully honored.
