• Teachers had issued a raft of demands, threatening to strike if they were unmet
• National union gave state benefit of doubt while post-primary union vowed to strike
Image: KEITH MUSEKE
Confusion surrounds the reopening of schools for the third term today after teacher unions gave conflicting calls on whether to proceed with a strike.
Yesterday, Kuppet secretary general Akelo Misori said, “Strike (is) on.”
Meanwhile, his Knut counterpart Collins Oyuu urged teachers to report to work, citing "government commitment to addressing teachers' concerns".
Following a day-long meeting of Knut's National Executive Council, Oyuu said some of the demands have been agreed upon.
"The 2nd phase of salary award for teachers was given and factored into their salaries in areas for August 2024," he said, adding that the move gives room for the commencement of the CBA 2025-29 cycle.
Oyuu said third-party deductions have since been remitted to commercial banks, teachers' saccos, teacher investment schemes and other legal liabilities.
He said 51,232 teachers have since been promoted through competitive interviews and the process is ongoing.
On teachers' medical schemes, Oyuu said the commission asserted that they will continue accessing services in public and private hospitals.
He raised concern over the fate of 46,000 intern teachers as well as the employment of 20,000 teachers to address the shortage.
Education CS Julius Migos praised the union for their "selfless act of patriotism, which prioritises the best interests of learners".
"We assure our teachers of the government's genuine commitment to addressing all their legitimate concerns, notwithstanding the limiting fiscal space within which we are operating as a country," he said.
The CS said resources have been provided for the implementation of the second phase of the 2021-25 CBA with effect from July 1.
Teachers want the government to address several demands before going back to class.
One of the demands is the implementation of phase two of the 2021-25 Collective Bargaining Agreement and confirmation into Permanent and Pensionable employment of 46,000 Junior Secondary School teachers currently engaged as interns.
Other demands are the promotion of more than 130,000 teachers who have stagnated in one job group for 10 years and above and the release of third-party deductions.
They also want the remittance of medical funds to the AON insurance scheme and the immediate payment of retirement benefits to those who retire from public service.
On August 16, President William Ruto directed the Treasury and the TSC to dialogue with teachers' unions.
“That engagement is going to happen and I ask all the stakeholders to work together for the interests of our children, respecting what is due to the teachers," Ruto said at Eldoret State Lodge, where he hosted the Kenya Music Festival gala.
Ruto said stakeholders must sit together to look at the possibilities of implementing government commitments to avoid strikes in institutions.
However, the talks between TSC, Knut and Kuppet ended in a stalemate last week as parties failed to agree.
"Regrettably, the commission has once again failed to address our concerns," the unions said in the statement signed by Kuppet secretary general Akelo Misori and his Knut counterpart Collins Oyuu.
"The commissioners brought absolutely nothing tangible in five out of six irreducible demands we have made."
TSC, however, stated that they had reached an agreement for the implementation of the 2021-25 CBA.
"The TSC wishes to profusely thank the government for providing adequate resources for the CBA and all other teacher programmes despite the harsh economic environment," a statement from the commission stated.
On Sunday, the Elimu Bora Working Group called on the government to act swiftly and avert the strike.
Group members David Karani, Boaz Waruku, Ernest Cornel and Maxwell Magawi said the looming strike would be an extra setback after valuable time was lost to floods earlier in the year.
“The government, through the Ministry of Education, must act swiftly to avert this disaster by engaging teachers in honest dialogue and offering practical solutions to their collective bargaining agreements,” Cornel, who read the statement on behalf of the group, said.
“It is the government's responsibility to honour CBAs and prevent this crisis.”
The group said the ball is in the government’s court to meet the teachers' demands and ensure that learning continues uninterrupted.
They decried that a lot of money was being lost on waste and corruption.
“You can see wanton extravagance among government officials. It is not honest that the government tells teachers that it does not have money,” Cornel said.
The lobby urged Chief Justice Martha Koome to fast-track a case they filed in court over the controversial model.
The four officials said the new funding model is “not only unjust but will set up students to fail”.
On October 13 last year, Elimu Bora Working Group, Kenya Human Rights Commission and the Students’ Caucus moved to court to block the new model.
They say the case has not taken off due to constant court extensions.
Karani urged Chief Justice Martha Koome to intervene.
“We saw Lady Justice Koome issuing a statement saying she does not even watch any news anymore because it is saddening that all the young people are unable to fulfil their dreams of education because of the new funding model,” he said.
“If you feel for those Kenyans, kindly look for a way to ensure this case is heard and determined as soon as possible.”
Karani said the model has locked thousands of learners out of quality education.
“If education is the key, why are they making it so expensive to these young people?”
Magawi claimed the new model seeks to systematically exclude young Kenyans from state funding of education.
The group called for bursaries to be consolidated and a National Education Fund established to centralise all education sector funds, including the consolidated bursaries.
Applicants under the new model are categorised into five bands, depending on their level of need.
The Ministry of Education uses the Means Testing Instrument (MTI) to determine the appropriate financial assistance each learner deserves.
The MTI relies on the accuracy of self-generated information provided by applicants regarding their socioeconomic background, affirmative action considerations, socio-demographic factors and family education expenses.
Learners in Band 1 get 95 per cent government support; Band 2: 90 per cent; Band 3: 80 per cent; Band 4: 70 per cent; and Band 5 60 per cent.
Students across the respective bands are also entitled to Sh60,000, Sh55,000, Sh50,000, Sh45,000 and Sh40,000 upkeep loans.
There have been complaints that some disadvantaged learners have been placed in Band 5 while they deserve to be in Band 1.