TSC stops pay rise for over 100,000 Knut teachers

The Teachers Service Commission has stopped the pay rise of 103,624 teachers who are members of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut).

The teachers’ employer said on Friday that the payroll for the Knut members has not factored in Phase Three of the 2017-2021 collective bargaining agreement (CBA) after a court ordered that terms be based on the schemes of service and not career progression guidelines (CPG) as TSC had wanted.

The commission said that based on the ruling, it could not implement the benefits under the third phase of the CBA.

“This will apply to 103,624 teachers who also include headteachers, deputy headteachers and senior teachers. Inevitably, this will also lead to Knut members losing all the benefits embedded in the CPG as an implementation tool for the CBA,” said Mr Kihumba Kamotho, head of communications at TSC.

A row between TSC and Knut on performance appraisal and contracting, transfers of teachers, promotion and professional development programme moved to court after the commission sued the teachers’ union in a bid to stop a work boycott.

TSC, however, lost the case and its attempt to have the ruling set aside failed as Justice Byram Ongaya declined the application.

In the judgment, Justice Ongaya set aside the performance based career progression frameworks for teacher management and remunerations.

The ruling also stopped the implementation of performance appraisal tools.

Mr Kamotho also said 96,000 teachers formerly designated as P1 and who were promoted to B5 with effect from July 1, 2017 would not be promoted under common cadre to C1 on  July 1, 2020.

“This is because promotion of teachers who are members of the Knut shall strictly be as per the provisions of the Schemes of Service,” he said.

He said the reversal of grades and full recovery of the previously enhanced salaries and allowances since July 1, 2017 would also be effected.

Mr Kamotho said the court judgment has necessitated preparation of two parallel payrolls in order to comply with the ruling without disadvantaging teachers who are not Knut members.

Teachers in the Kenya Post Primary Union of Teachers (Kuppet) have not been affected.

“In this regard, the payroll for teachers who are not Knut members has factored in implementation of Phase Three of the 2017-2021 CBA,” he said.

The commission said the payslips of the non-Knut members will reflect the enhanced pay in line with their grades.

On Wednesday, Kuppet leaders held a daylong meeting with TSC over the pay rise.

“We have been at TSC and we have discussed the issue and the commission has no option but to pay teachers. We are going to give them as they delay has not gone to the extreme,” said Kuppet secretary-general Akelo Misori.

He asked teachers to be patient, saying the union would not allow the CBA that was signed in October 2016 to be set aside.