Kenya National Union of Teachers threatens to go on strike over contested pay

KNUT officials led by chairman
Wilson Sossion (left) address the Press

Knut yesterday wrote to the Teachers Service Commission issuing a seven-day notice of the impending industrial action slated for August 7.

This will be only two days after the University Academic Staff Union will have called its members out of the lecture halls to demand Sh3.9 billion salary arrears from the Government.

Operations in all public universities will also be paralysed as the Kenya Universities Staff Union has also weighed in to demand payment according to the agreement.

But even with all this, Education Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi and his PS Belio Kipsang have maintained the teachers will not be paid for ‘no work done’ (days lost during the July strike).

TSC secretary Gabriel Lengoiboni has also written to Knut explaining why their members will go without the July pay.

Knut chairman Wilson Sossion and secretary-general Mudzo Nzilli said they have summoned the union’s National Executive Council next week to advise on the way forward.

The two expressed disappointment at the government’s failure to honour the return-to-work formula and had instead resorted to punitive measures to victimise teachers. They also accused the Salaries and Remuneration Commission of meddling in the affairs of TSC by issuing orders and demanding implementation.

The aggressor

Knut also took a swipe at TSC for “stooping too low and accepting to be used by SRC” to advance the government’s agenda.

“We know who is saying the truth. We also know who is the aggressor. This is not a honest government,” said Sossion, adding that the State is cash-strapped and has resorted to “awkward and illegal” means to raise cash to finance some of its projects.

He claimed by denying teachers their July pay, the State intends to raise Sh13 billion. “They want to use Sh3.6 billion of this money to employ 10,000 new teachers. They also want to use Sh6 billion to settle commuter allowance as was agreed between the union and the State,” he claimed.

Sossion said their deal with the government was not Sh16.8 billion as reported because the TSC already uses Sh5.5 billion of the cash to pay commuter allowance.