The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) has finally thrown its weight behind the planned nationwide teachers’ strike this month.
Kuppet’s executive secretary for Laikipia, Ndung'u Wangenye, vowed to support the teachers’ decision to down their tools, saying it was upon the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to act on their concerns. The strike is meant to push for a new pay deal.
Wangenye maintained that Kuppet members back the industrial strike despite the stand of their national secretary general, Akelo Misori, who on Friday dismissed their rival union, the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), for engaging in intimidation to remain relevant.
“We have given a notice and we are waiting for the TSC to act before we get engaged in a high voltage strike,” said Wangenye.
Teachers are demanding a new collective bargaining agreement with a basic salary component in it, including increment of house allowance from Sh3,000.
“We are demanding that the TSC engages with teachers immediately on increasing the basic pay, house allowance, annual leave allowance, responsibility and comprehensive medical cover,” said Wangenye.
He lamented that the TSC consultative committee had been too slow in initiating this discussion and solving the stalemate, which he said may lead to paralysing of learning activities in schools until their demands are met.
The teachers issued a strike notice on August 27 if TSC does not start talks on a new pay deal, which is supposed to take them to 2017.
Gabriel Lengoibon, the TSC boss, has already indicated of the commission’s readiness to engage with teachers and come up with a new deal to avert the looming strike.
Kuppet has also warned it would not accept regulations that will take the management of teachers away from TSC.