Fresh salary concerns have emerged in the education sector after the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) demanded the reopening of its collective bargaining agreement (CBA), saying teachers have been left behind under the newly approved pay structure for civil servants.
The union says the revised salaries and allowances approved by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) have widened the gap between teachers and other public servants, leaving many educators, especially those in senior job groups, at a disadvantage. The new salary scales for national government employees will take effect from August 1.
Kuppet Secretary-General Akello Misori said the union will immediately seek fresh negotiations with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) so that teachers' salaries are aligned with those of other public servants.
“Our CBA must be revised immediately and we will not tire to enter into a new CBA with TSC once the SRC also sees sense that whatever they have given other public servants is not commensurate because the teachers are saying there is discrimination,” said Mr Misori.
According to the SRC salary structure, officers in Grade E4 will earn a basic monthly salary of between Sh312,000 and Sh576,000, while those in Grade E3 will take home up to Sh400,000 before house allowances are added.
Teachers, on the other hand, remain at Grade D5, where the highest basic monthly salary stands at Sh133,354. Although newly employed teachers earn slightly more than entry-level civil servants, Kuppet says the salary progression for teachers is far lower, creating a wider pay gap as employees rise through the ranks.
Kuppet National Chairperson Omboko Milemba said teachers cannot continue accepting a salary structure that places them below other public servants despite their training and responsibilities.
“A sweeper in public service is earning Sh25,000 while a trained teacher is earning Sh26,000 at the lowest level. We are not going to allow that,” he said.
Milemba also criticised the Teachers Service Commission, accusing it of failing to secure better salaries and employment terms for teachers during negotiations with the SRC and other government institutions.
“If the TSC cannot offer good terms of service and negotiate for teachers when they go to meet the SRC and other government agencies, then we don’t need them. We would rather have teachers getting paid under the Public Service Commission,” he said.
Kuppet maintained that it will continue pushing for a new CBA to remove what it describes as unfair treatment of teachers and ensure their salaries match those of other public servants.
The union's call comes a day after the Kenya Civil Servants Union also rejected the SRC-approved salary structure.