KUPPET Teachers Vow To Paralyze Activities In Schools As They Demand CBA Implementation
By Emmanuel Oyasi,
Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), has insisted that its members will boycott classes until the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is fully implemented.
Led by the general secretary West Pokot branch, Alfred Kamuto, the union said they want the confirmation of Junior Secondary School teachers to permanent and pensionable terms, employment of an additional 20,000 teachers, and the government to honor the 2021/2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)
Mr. Kamuto expressed his dismay at the salaries that JSS teachers get despite the workload.
“We want our rights. TSC and the government of Kenya should confirm JSS teachers into permanent and pensionable positions. We also want the teachers who have stagnated in the same group to be promoted to another job group,” said Mr. Kamuto.
His statements were echoed by the Union chairman, Joel Lotukol, who also asked the parents to stay with their children at home while the teachers continue to push for a better working environment.
“Can you imagine a teacher earning 17,000? This is somebody who has a family, somebody handling 13 subjects and operating in a very difficult environment. We are telling the parents to kindly stay home with your children,” said Mr. Lotukol.
On their side, the Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers led by Geoffrey Doiwan asked the government to respect the teaching profession and honor the promises made to teachers to enable work in better conditions.
“The government promised to confirm us by July but they have delayed till now. Today we are telling the government that we are not going back to school until we are confirmed. We are not going to continue offering our services to a government that is not respecting its promises,” said Mr. Doiwan.