Teachers threaten to boycott exam supervision
Knut Secretary General Wilson Sossion speaking at Tom Mboya Labour College on August 25, 2017. He has said teachers will paralyse third term programs if their annual pay increment is not reinstated. PHOTO | TONNY OMONDI | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Mr Sossion, said all teachers have a right to an annual increment.
- He told teachers to brace themselves for the “mother of all strikes.”
Teachers have threatened to disrupt this year’s national examinations if the government fails to reinstate their annual salary increment.
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary General Wilson Sossion said teachers will do everything possible to have the annual increment back.
Speaking at Tom Mboya Labour College in Kisumu on Friday where he launched a three day workshop for representatives of various unions of people with disability, Mr Sossion said they will paralyse all third term programs, including the supervision of the national exams.
"Let Dr Fred Matiang’i know that all his third term plans are in jeopardy because of TSC behaviour. We will paralyse everything even the national examination," he said.
PAY INCREMENT
He told teachers to brace themselves for the “mother of all strikes.”
"Doctors went for strike for more than 90 days. We will down tools for more than that even if it is 120 days," Mr Sossion said.
The threat comes barely a day after Knut issued a seven-day strike notice demanding the reinstatement of teachers’ annual pay increment and promotion for educators with higher qualifications.
Teachers Service Commission (TSC) had scrapped the yearly salary increment arguing that the signed Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between Knut and the government in 2013, which was implemented on July 1, already addressed the matter.
The union is also opposing the decolonisation of head teachers and principals arguing that such attempts do not only interfere with the performance of schools but also destabilises the teachers and their families.
Speaking in Nairobi on Thursday, Mr Sossion, said all teachers have a right to an annual increment, saying it was not an item of discussion in the 2017-2021 CBA, which was effected last month.
