This archive report was first published on 2 August 2019.
On August 2, 2019, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) halted a pay raise for 103,624 teachers who are members of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT). The move was a result of a court ruling that stopped the implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
The TSC cited the Labour Court's decision to suspend the execution of the CBA, which relied on career progression guidelines. This meant that the pay raise, worth Sh. 13 billion, would not be implemented for 160,000 teachers in Kenya.
According to a report, over 318,000 teachers were yet to receive their payslips online by the 25th of every month, which is unusual for the TSC. The commission releases salaries by this date.
As a result of the court ruling, the TSC will be forced to recall the enhanced July salaries that had been programmed to be paid as phase two of the CBA. This is because the court has effectively stopped the implementation of the CBA, said TSC's lead lawyer Timon Oyucho.
The Collective Bargaining Agreement was signed between the TSC and teachers' unions on October 20, 2016. It was to be implemented in four years for junior teachers and two phases for senior teachers. The first phase was implemented on July 1, 2017, and the last will be paid out on June 30, 2021.
However, the second phase of the CBA commenced on July 1, last year, and went on until June 30, 2019. The pay hike was meant for teachers who hold administrative positions, but certain categories, including primary teacher II, primary teacher I, secondary teacher III, secondary teacher II, and primary special needs education, were not to benefit.
