Case against strike to be heard as union sues employer

The Teachers Service Commission case challenging the ongoing strike will be heard on Friday.

The commission on Thursday moved to court faulting the two teachers unions for calling a nationwide strike in public schools.

The commission says the strike will paralyse learning in primary and secondary schools which violates the children’s right to education.

Lawyer Geoffrey Obura said the Kenya National Union of Teachers and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers wrongly and unlawfully called for the strike because this violates labour laws.

The commission pleaded with the judge to have the case heard during the current judges and magistrates’ vacation. He told the court that the commission needs funding from the National Treasury to be able to pay salary increments demanded by the two unions.

Lady Justice Monica Mbaru said the matter should be heard on Friday before she issues any further directives. The judge also asked commission to file more case documents within eight hours.

The teachers’ employer claims the call for the industrial action was contrary to public policy and undermines the ongoing judicial process aimed at solving the salary dispute between the unions and their employer.

BLATANTLY REFUSED

Meanwhile, Knut sued the commission chairperson and its chief executive officer as well as the Cabinet and principal secretaries of Treasury and Labour for refusing to respect court orders which required teachers’ basic pay to be raised by 50 to 60 per cent.

The union’s advocate John Mbaluto told Lady Justice Mbaru that a July 23 Court of Appeal ruling said the teachers’ salaries should be increased from August.

Even though the ruling has been challenged at the Supreme Court by the commission, Knut claimed that the judgment and orders issued at the appellate court have not been set aside or halted by the top court despite a request to do so.

Knut Secretary-General Wilson Sossion said that the sued parties have blatantly refused to pay teachers as awarded by the court.

Mr Sossion said that those who had been sued had only made bold public statements that they will not pay. Knut seeks to compel the government to obey the court.

Knut claimed that parties who disobey court orders must be punished and that there was no other remedy for compelling them to pay.

“Disobedience of court orders threatens the very foundation upon which the administration of justice is pegged on as well as the Constitutional powers granted to the judiciary,” Mr Mbaluto said.

The teachers’ pay increment row spilled into court earlier this year and Justice Nduma Nderi ordered that the 50-60 per cent increment award over a four year period from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2017.

But the Court of appeal judges Mohammed Warsame, Sankale Ole Kantai and Jamila Mohammed ruled later on July 23 that the government should increase teachers’ pay starting last month.