KNUT Teachers to Get No Pay Rise and Lose All Pay Benefits, Says TSC
The Kenya National Union of Teachers KNUT members will not get pay rise, this is according to the Teachers Service Commission.
TSC says that the above group of teachers will lose all the benefits stipulated in the career progression guidelines.
According to reports by the DailyNation, TSC said, “The payroll for the Knut union teachers has not factored in Phase Three of the 2017-2021 collective bargaining agreement (CBA)”.
This follows a court order to base the teachers’ pay on the schemes of service as opposed to the career progression guidelines (CPG).
The employer said that according to the court’s directive, it could not implement the benefits under the third phase of the CBA.
Through a statement by TSC head of communications Mr Kihumba Kamotho, TSC said the move will affect 103,624 teachers who also include headteachers, deputy headteachers and senior teachers.
Mr Kamotho said, “Inevitably, this will also lead to Knut members losing all the benefits embedded in the CPG as an implementation tool for the CBA,”.
The teachers’ union and their employer have been entangled in a continued court battle teacher transfers, promotions, performance appraisals and professional development programs. Sadly, the commission lost the battle after the court ruling.
According to the nation media, TSC said 96,000 formerly P1 teachers who were promoted to B5 from July 1, 2017 would not be promoted under common cadre to C1 on July 1, 2020.
Mr Kamotho explained,“This is because promotion of teachers who are members of the Knut shall strictly be as per the provisions of the Schemes of Service”.
The teachers employer further added that it will reverse the grades and recover the previous enhanced salaries and allowances since July 1, 2017.
In defending their proposed actions, TSC added that the court directive forced them to create two parallel payrolls in order to comply and not to affect the non KNUT members.
On the other hand, TSC said the non KNUT teachers such as those in KUPPET will not feel the pinch.
Mr Kamotho was quoted by Nation media saying, “In this regard, the payroll for teachers who are not Knut members has factored in implementation of Phase Three of the 2017-2021 CBA”.
TSC promised that those teachers who are not members of KNUT will have their payslips factored with the enhanced pay in accordance to their professional grades.