Lecturers threaten strike over pay

Lecturers on Sunday issued a fresh strike threat to protest failure by university administrations to fully implement a pay deal they signed in 2012.

The lecturers said the vice-chancellors had failed to obey the Collective Bargaining Agreement that gave them Sh7.8 billion that was to be paid in two tranches.

The Universities Academic Staff Union (Uasu) and Kenya Universities Staff Union (Kusu) held a joint media conference yesterday where they gave the government only today to resolve their grievances or face a strike.

Uasu represents lecturers while Kusu is for all professional workers at the universities.

The union officials said they wrote to the Ministry of Education on December 31 giving the Cabinet Secretary 14 days to respond to their concerns regarding the pay dispute.

They said they would meet today to issue a strike notice if the government did not act.

The lecturer’s strike comes just four days after teachers suspended their boycott after reaching a deal with the Teachers Service Commission on the contested issue of promotion.

The dons raised a number of issues, including using the money for other purposes such as paying pension and gratuities, allocating funds to university colleges that were not in existence when the agreement was sealed and depositing of the money in personal accounts.

Uasu secretary-general Muga K’Olale said their patience was running out and they were ready to boycott lecturer rooms.

“The tension in our universities is reaching fever-pitch. The salary review and the house allowances have not been done as agreed. We have realised that most of the money has been used for other purposes not agreed on,” Mr K’Olale said.

He said they had given the government until Monday to respond to their concerns before making a decision to stay away from work.