Teachers And Lecturers' Strike In Kenya

As Reported By Capital FM

Crisis talks on teacher’s strike end in stalemate

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 5 – The Government’s first meeting with the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) over the on-going strike has ended in a stalemate.

No single item between the parties was agreed upon following separate meetings between the rival unions and Labour Minister John Munyes that lasted more than six hours.

Munyes said they broke off discussions for the night and will resume them on Thursday morning, as both parties needed time to consult over the matters raised.

“It has been a very good meeting; we have explored issues ranging from salary increments, harmonisation, and calling off the strike. We have concretised the issues that need to be addressed but we have not agreed much on the issue and we will have to consult further,” he said.

The Minister confirmed that the government did not place any offers on the table as the parties had to first justify their demands.

Munyes told journalists who had camped outside the Ministry Headquarters at NSSF Building, that the issues of teacher’s salaries had been there for a long time and should be addressed for once and for all.

He called on the teachers to go back to class as the talks proceed.

“What we have started is positive and will deliver a solution to the problem that has affected the teacher, and I want to encourage the Unions to call off the strike. I want the unions to sleep over the matter for the sake of the children,” he added.

KNUT chair Wilson Sossion said that the government wanted more time to consult after the tutors put their offer on the table.

“We have placed our issues, the demands of teachers, as we registered the dispute with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and have suspended the negotiations till Thursday morning. These are very weighty issues which you can’t clear. We are on strike and we have no problem if they want even a month to consult,” said Sossion after the discussions.

Sources at the meeting however said that the lack of results was due to the fact that neither party was willing to drop their hard-line stance.

In the case of KNUT, the government wanted to first address the issue of harmonisation of salaries and completion of the allowances that were part of the 1997 deal.

KNUT officials are said to have been uncomfortable about the emphasis placed on allowances, and not the 300 percent salary increase.

“How can a meeting be called with a pre-determined objective, the solution to this strike must be wholesome and not piecemeal,” said a union official, who wished not to be named for fear of being seen to jeopardise the first day of the talks.


Before the crisis meeting with teachers’ representatives, Education Minister Mutula Kilonzo stated categorically that a 300 percent pay-rise was out of the question.

Meanwhile, KUPPET led by Secretary General Akelo Misori, whose meeting took less than half an hour after that of KNUT’s said their negotiations had flopped, but that they still intend to meet Munyes on Thursday morning.

“The talks so far have collapsed and it’s unfortunate that the strike has to continue because what the government is putting on the table is unclear; harmonisation is not the only issue we have put on the table,” he claimed.

KUPPET officials who had camped at the minister’s office claimed that their rival union was receiving preferential treatment.

The meeting on Wednesday evening was also attended by TSC Secretary Gabriel Lengoiboni, Labour PS Beartice Kituyi and Education PS George Godia.

  

To strike or not to strike; lecturers’ action in doubt

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 5 – Confusion emerged on Wednesday evening between the Unions that represent Public Universities Lecturers and workers, over whether or not they would proceed with a strike called for 8am Thursday.

At a press briefing, Vice Chairman of the Inter-Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), James Tuitoek, said the strike was off because the Unions had been called upon to start talks concerning their complaints on salaries and house allowances.

Tuitoek said that the government had on Wednesday given IPUCCF guidelines to start negotiations with all the unions but only the Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotel, Educational Institutions, Hospitals, and Allied Workers (KUDHEIHA) seemed to agree with the idea.

“We would like to confirm today (Wednesday) that the government has given us very clear guidelines in writing, which has enabled us to prepare counter offers to our unions. And therefore from today negotiations can start and we believe that there is no reason for anybody to withdraw labour from our Universities. I believe this is clear to everyone,” stated Tuitoek.

However, the University Academic Staff Union (Uasu) and Universities Non-Teaching Staff Union (Utensu) insisted that the strike is still on and that there was no way KUDHEIHA should be involved in the said negotiations as it had not even issued the strike notice.

“How can you cancel a strike which has not yet started? Those are simply busy bodies that have no idea about this issue. We do not know where they agree with the government to strike a deal with the unions,” Samuel Nyandemo, the UASU chair for Nairobi told Capital News.
He insists that the lecturers under Uasu and Utensu will proceed with the strike, which he said would start promptly at 8am on Thursday, since the government does not want to address their grievances as earlier agreed.

“You cannot just wake up from nowhere and tell us to stop the strike without any agreement. Some of these things don’t need to be rushed like this. We had issued a statement earlier in the day that the strike is on and that stands,” insisted Nyandemo.

But Tuitoek stressed that it was not right for the two disagreeing Unions to go ahead with the strike yet they have been called for talks.

“Dialogue is the best way to solve issues. Our staff please, go on with work as usual from tomorrow and we would like the two unions in particular (Uasu & Utensu) to give this guideline and withdraw the strike notice,” Tuitoek said.

The university lecturers and workers insist that the industrial action was necessitated by the government’s failure to honour an agreement brokered with them in 2008.

Lecturers are proposing that a professor be paid a maximum of Sh400,000, up from the current Sh165,000 a month and a house allowance of Sh95,000 up from Sh64,000.

 Source: Capital FM-Kenya