President William Ruto on Saturday met with officials of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) at State House Nairobi amid challenges facing the education sector in the country.
The meeting came at a time when teachers across the country are complaining about non-remittance of union dues by the Teachers Service Commission for the past three months.
Present in the meeting which discussed a number of issues affecting the education sector included Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and Kuppet officials led by its Chairman Mr Omboko Milemba and Secretary General Akello Misori.
In a statement released after the consultative meeting, Mr Misori indicated that the union briefed the President on important issues in the education sector and the welfare and working conditions of teachers in public service.
“The union sought the President's support for its current programs, including negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for the 2025-2029 cycle,” said Mr Misori.
They lauded the government’s gesture of employing a record 51, 000 teachers in a single year in 2023, some initially as interns but all now on permanent and pensionable terms.
Appreciating the Teachers Service Commission’s implementation of the Court Consent/Return-to-Work Formula signed between Kuppet and the Commission on September 5, 2024, Mr Misori noted that the employer had delivered on most of its commitments under the Consent.
Among these were full implementation of the 2021-2025 CBA; the confirmation of 46, 000 Junior Secondary School teachers into permanent and pensionable positions and provisions for the Teachers Medical Scheme.
Others were the employment of 20,000 new teachers, the repeal of Career Progression Guidelines; and promotion of 45,000 teachers - all within two months of signing the Consent.
“The union appealed to the President to ensure the TSC's access to more funds for the promotion of all 130, 000 stagnated teachers; the employment of more teachers to bridge the deficit; and a review of teachers' housing, leave and commuter allowances, among other priorities,” said Mr Misori.
President Ruto is said to have assured the union of the high premium he attaches to stakeholder engagement and urged Kuppet to support the government in delivering its flagship projects.
He acknowledged that, as the representative of teachers across all facets of work, Kuppet may have grievances that the TSC may not address by itself, such as the allocation of funds for new employment.
“In such matters, he urged us to exhaust the means of dialogue within government all the way to the presidency, and to use industrial action only as a last resort,” said Mr Misori.
Besides bilateral issues, the President briefed the union on the government's priorities including the housing development project to which teachers are a major contributor under the Housing Levy launched in 2023.
Later in the day, the NEB members visited the Mukuru Housing Project, one of 140 sites across the country comprising 14,000 housing units.
President William Ruto with officials of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) at State House, Nairobi on November 2, 2024.
Photo credit: PCS
But as the national officials of Kuppet met the Head of State, teachers from across the county were lamenting about deduction and non0-remittance of union dues by TSC that has crippled operations in the branches.
Strange enough, the union dues impasse never featured in the talks, at least according to the brief shared by Mr Misori after the meeting.
Mr Misori never mentioned anything to do with the impasse that has driven the union has driven the lobby to run to teachers, politicians and well-wishers to help them with the operation of their offices.
It is emerging that Kuppet branches nationwide are facing pecuniary embarrassment in meeting their operations costs.
Teachers under the umbrella body are being asked to send whatever little amount they have to help fund operations which include paying staff within the branches.
This is after the union, for a third consecutive month, failed to get money from its members after TSC failed to deduct union dues from its employees.
This happened after the August-September 2024 strike and eventual consent and signing of Return to work formula.
The union dues are what sustain Kuppet and other similar outfits in the country including Kenya Union of Teachers (Knut) and other professional bodies.
The situation cuts across the 47 counties where Kuppet officials struggle to sustain office operations amidst a cash crisis.
Kisumu, Homa Bay and Nairobi counties for instance have turned to teachers, politicians and WhatsApp groups to seek funds to run some union activities.
In Nairobi, the Kuppet branch officials claim loans are now on their necks because they have failed to service some loans.
The Executive Secretary Mr Moses Bomara also claimed failure to remit union dues amounted to victimization of its members.
“We have suffered enough, our properties are being repossessed by banks from which we took loans, we are incapable of paying staff and rent. What is happening now is a disservice and illegal,” said Mr Bomara.
In Kisumu, the branch office is fund raising on WhatsApp urging its members to come to their rescue.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the great Kisumu County, I greet you and pray all is well. Today I come to you with a rather unique request. Following our recent legal industrial action in which we wholeheartedly participated and yielded the gains that were outlined for us in our Branch Governing Assembly, it is important to note that TSC responded by stopping the union dues in an effort to frustrate us from agitating for ourselves,” read a communication in a Kisumu KUPPET and teachers WhatsApp group.
The communication further stated that: “The result of this is that all union employees have had to go without salaries for the past three months. It is for this reason that I appeal to you that we come together in support of our Executive Secretaries and our employees in Kuppet Kisumu County even as the National Executive Board works towards the resumption of normalcy.”
In the groups, there is a long list of names of teachers who have contributed from as low as Sh200 and as high as sh1000 toward the initiative.
Mr Zablon Awange, Kuppet Executive Secretary, Kisumu branch painted a grim picture at the situation they are facing saying TSC has hatched a plot to frustrate and eventually kill the unions in a bid to disenfranchise teachers and take away their bargaining power.
“In Kisumu, office rents are three months in arrears and will be closed by mid Nov while workers have not been paid three months’ salary. It is unlawful and unfair labor practices for TSC to target Kuppet in a bid to muzzle it and render it a toothless union through withholding or failure to deduct union dues,” said Mr Awange.
He however stated that TSC on the other hand has continued to illegally deduct female teachers Kenya Women Teachers Association (KEWOTA) without their consent saying it all boils down to a vindictive employer TSC.
He maintained that despite the challenges, they will not abdicate their responsibilities to agitate for members.
In Homa Bay, the Kuppet branch is also using unconventional means to maintain its operations.
“All of them would contribute 1.8 per cent of their basic salary for the union. 35 percent of it was sent to the national office while the rest helped in running activities at the grassroots level,” he said.
In the county, Kuppet has a number of projects which it is undertaking including the construction of an office in Rangwena in the outskirts of Homa Bay Town.
Mr Yogo said they operate from an office where they pay Sh20,000 every month.
In order to cut costs and have a source of income, the union began a Sh4.8 million construction project where they intend to put up a storey building for people to rent as offices.
“We were to occupy the office in September after putting tiles on the floor and finishing other works. We are however unable to move in because of financial constraints and will continue to stay in a leased office which has three months’ unpaid rent,” he said.
According to the unionist, some of the people who took part in the construction project have not been paid and officials are uncertain when they will get money to settle debts.
Besides Mr Yogo, other staff at Kuppet office in Homa Bay have not been paid since TSC decided not to deduct union dues and send it to the union. They include a driver, office secretary and two security guards.
He explained that Kuppet members are normally given some funds when they are bereaved or are involved in an accident or when a teacher is caught in an emergency like losing property in a fire incident.
“We give the affected family Sh50,000 under Burial Benevolent Fund (BBF). This has been the policy of the union and we support members under difficult moments,” the unionist said.
But since the outfit started experiencing a cash crisis, its members who have lost a loved one are left to carry all the burden of meeting funeral expenses.
Mr Yogo said he is also reaching out to politicians for help. This is particularly because of an upcoming annual general meeting later this week.
