Govt consents to enact phase II of the 2021–25 CBA for teachers.
If the internal committees of three teacher unions approve of a settlement agreed with the Teachers Service Commission, the nationwide teachers’ strike may be called off before Monday.
TSC met with representatives of the Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET), the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet), and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) on Wednesday to discuss the postponed implementation of the reviewed Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) for 2021–2025.
An addition to the CBAs was signed in August 2023, after they were first signed in June 2021.
Phases one and two were scheduled to begin on July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2024, respectively.
Following the talks, the government allocated funding for the execution of the CBA’s second phase, which would take effect on July 1, 2024, according to a statement released by TSC CEO Nancy Macharia.
In essence, the unions have acknowledged the TSC’s stance and decided to confer with their internal committees in order to revoke the strike announcement. Thus, we would like to express our gratitude to the unions for working with the Commission to guarantee that school instruction won’t be disrupted during the third term of 2024,” Macharia stated.
On Monday, August 16, 2024, teachers were instructed by the teacher unions to abstain from teaching and to remain out of the classrooms.
They want the following things: the complete execution of the 2021–25 CBA; 130,000 stagnant teachers to be promoted; Sh15 billion to be set aside for teachers’ health insurance; and the release of teachers’ salaries for July 2024.
Additionally, they demand that the commission send all loans and NSSF deductions to the appropriate statutory agencies, claiming that since June 2024, the agency has been deducting money without sending it to banks or other third-party agents.
According to Macharia, at Wednesday’s meeting, the teacher unions addressed a number of the topics listed above as well as a few more.
She stated that they comprise the Career Progression Guidelines, which are the continuous and current submission of third-party deductions.
She noted that as part of the Teachers Medical Scheme, educators now have access to both public and private hospitals as well as medical coverage.
According to Macharia, “the TSC has promoted 51,232 teachers under competitive promotions and an additional 20,000 teachers annually on common cadre.”
She continued by saying that funds from the government have been made available to help instructors get new tools in preparation for CBC.
President William Ruto gave the committee instructions to come to an agreement with teachers in order to stop the impending strike, and that is how the meeting came about.
In spite of the challenging economic climate, Macharia complimented the government for allocating sufficient funds for the CBA and all other teacher programs.
She reiterated the commission’s resolve to give every teacher in the nation a comfortable place to work.
“Therefore, now that the government has released funds for the implementation of the second phase of the 2021-2025 ΒA, we are pleading with all of our teachers to report to schools on Monday for the start of the Third Term,” she stated.
Govt consents to enact phase II of the 2021–25 CBA for teachers.
