University unions have called for a strike starting January Monday 9, following the collapse of talks Friday between the government and unions representing lecturers and non-teaching staff aimed at averting a planned strike.
The talks were aimed at persuading the government to adopt the 2013-2017 salary increase proposed CBA whose expiry date would be in five months’ time.
The Kenya University Staff Union (KUSU) Secretary-General Charles Mukhwaya cautioned continuing students not to report back to University for the new Semester saying that even new admissions were likely to be interrupted.
“We caution all continuing students not to report to universities and parents to rethink admission plans,” he said.
The Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Educational Institutions, Hospitals and Allied Workers (KUDHEIHA) and Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) have faulted the Education Ministry and the Inter-Public Universities Council Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) for refusing to submit counter-proposals to their Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for the parties to initiate negotiations based on the submissions by the trade union in December 2012.
Addressing a joint press conference Sunday in Nairobi, KUDHEIHA Secretary General Albert Njeru and UASU deputy chairperson Joseph Mberia called on all members of the union in the 33 public universities to assemble at the graduation grounds Monday morning for further instructions.
The unions draft submission seeks to raise staff salaries by 150 percent and house allowance by 100 per cent.