This archive report was first published on 30 August 2021.
On the eve of a nationwide strike, the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) announced that it would suspend the industrial action to allow for more talks with government representatives.
According to a statement by UASU Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga, the union's top leadership held a crisis meeting on Sunday in Nairobi with Principal Secretary for University Education and Research Simon Nabukwesi to review the conciliation process initiated by the Ministry of Labour.
The meeting aimed to resolve the impasse over the implementation of the 2017-2021 collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which has stalled. The parties agreed to review the outcome of talks between the union and Inter-Public Universities Council Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) under the auspices of the National Implementation Committee (NIC).
Dr. Wasonga noted that the NIC has agreed that all public universities must immediately submit returns for audit and enforcement of the compliance with the 2017-2021 CBA. He appreciated the members' zeal to fight for the 'dignity of the dons.'
Wasonga also called for a review of the orders of the Employment and Labour Relations Court issued on August 26, after the suspension of the strike became a relief to the 35 public universities where learning would have been paralyzed.
