A group of Junior school teachers have lost their bid to form a separate trade union outside the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut).
The Employment and Labour Relations Court struck out their Constitutional petition challenging the Registrar of Trade Unions’ refusal to approve the proposed Kenya Junior School Teachers Union (KEJUSTU).
Justice Monica Mbaru ruled that the junior school teachers had used the wrong legal procedure, saying they had failed to demonstrate why they could not challenge the Registrar’s decision through the statutory appeal mechanism provided under Section 30 of the Labour Relations Act, instead of a Constitutional petition.
“No special or exceptional circumstances demonstrate that moving the court under a petition, instead of applying the dispute resolution mechanism under section 30 of the Labour Relations Act, is warranted. The court is not properly moved," said Justice Mbaru, striking out the petition that had also been opposed by Knut and Kuppet.
The dispute was on whether a group of teachers, who came into the system as part of the transition to the new competency-based education framework, needs its own union or should pursue its interests through existing ones. The judgment did not resolve that debate.
Junior secondary school teachers demonstrate in Eldoret City, Uasin Gishu County on April 30, 2026 demanding to be employed on permanent and pensionable terms.
Photo credit: Jared Nyataya | Nation Media Group
Led by James Odhiambo, they argued that junior school teachers form a distinct group with specialised qualifications and workplace concerns that existing unions had not adequately addressed. They said the proposed union would represent more than 100,000 teachers countrywide.
Their June 6, 2026 application to the Registrar sought a certificate to promote the union and its registration.
The Registrar rejected it on July 1, saying the teachers were sufficiently represented by Kuppet and Knut. Another union could cause “inter-union rivalry and scramble for members”, the Registrar warned.
“Registration of new unions will lead to a disruption in the sector due to inter-union rivalry and scramble for members," the Registrar said in the rejection decision.
The petitioners said the Registrar had failed to assess whether existing unions represented a substantial portion of their interests. They argued that the refusal violated their rights to association and to join a union of choice, and was discriminatory because other education cadres had separate unions.
The teachers said the Registrar considered registration before their promotion-certificate application, and asked the court to overturn the refusal. They also sought declarations of discrimination and orders barring officials from obstructing the proposed union’s registration process.
Kuppet opposed the case through an affidavit by its Secretary-General Akelo Misori. He argued that the dispute should have been filed as an appeal, not a constitutional petition, and that the teachers had not exhausted the statutory process.
Mr Misori said junior school teachers were post-primary educators within Kuppet's constituency. He said the union amended its constitution in 2024 to provide representation at branch and national levels. Kuppet had 131 officials across those levels, including junior school teachers, and reserved positions for them, he said.
Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers Secretary-General Akelo Misori.
Photo credit: Billy Ogada | Nation Media Group
He disputed the claim that the proposed new union intended to represent 100,000 teachers, saying the 26 petitioners had no authority to sue for that wider group and the Registrar’s application was signed by 54 teachers.
He also said the application came after the 2026 union election cycle had closed and the petitioners had failed to contest branch seats.
Knut secretary-general Collins Oyuu also urged dismissal of the suit. Knut said it represented primary and post-primary teachers, had negotiated collective bargaining agreements and had not excluded junior school teachers.
Knut argued that the transition from the 8-4-4 system to the competency-based education did not remove its mandate to represent teachers, including those teaching in junior schools.
Justice Mbaru said the petitioners challenged the Registrar’s decision without explaining why the statutory appeal process could not protect their rights.
The court held that the teachers should have challenged the Registrar’s refusal through an appeal, rather than a constitutional petition, having failed to demonstrate that the statutory procedure was inadequate.
She ruled that constitutional provisions could not simply be attached to an ordinary labour dispute to bypass the procedure Parliament had provided.
The court noted that junior school teachers had elected representatives within Kuppet at branch and national level. It cited Section 31(2) of the Labour Relations Act, which provides that “No person shall be an official of more than one trade union or employer’s organisation.”
It said a separate union covering interests already represented could not be used to remedy a loss in union elections.
"Where the petitioners have secured representation within Kuppet through their elected representatives at the branch and national level, seeking to form and promote another trade union covered within an existing union is specifically prohibited. Where such registration for promotion is sought because the petitioners lost in the elections, such cannot be cured as herein sought," said the judge.
