Nyeri secondary school teachers affiliated to the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) on Wednesday defied a court order directing them to call off their strike and took to the streets to demand their rights.
Led by the Nyeri KUPPET branch executive secretary, Francis Wanjohi, the teachers held demonstrations in Nyeri streets carrying placards bearing messages to their employer the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
The teachers have vowed to continue paralysing learning operations in secondary schools until TSC addresses all their grievances.
Speaking to KNA, Wanjohi faulted TSC for acting in bad faith by rushing to court instead of inviting KUPPET to the negotiating table.
“We are treating the court orders as rumours because TSC is the one that should be obeying court orders and not us. As teachers we are still on strike and we will continue to be on strike until we receive further instructions from our Secretary General Akello Misori,” Wanjohi said.
On Tuesday, the Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi directed the striking teachers to call off their industrial action pending further orders on September 5. While responding to an urgent application filed on Monday by TSC, Justice James Rika said the orders will remain in place unless alternative instructions are issued on September 5 when the court will mention the matter.
“Pending hearing and determination of the Application inter parties, an order of temporary injunction is granted to the Petitioner, restraining the Respondent, its officials, members, employees, agents, or other person acting on its behalf, from withdrawing labour and / or commencing, engaging in, participating or continuing to participate in the intended industrial action, set to commence or 24th August 2024, or any other time thereafter,” said Justice Rika.
The industrial action started on Monday this week. The teachers are demanding full implementation of the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement. The union also wants the government to promote the 130,000 teachers who have stagnated in their current job grades within this financial year.
They are also demanding the immediate confirmation of 46,000 Junior Secondary School intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms and the employment of 20,000 additional teachers to address the huge deficit in Junior Secondary Schools.
As a condition for them to resume work, KUPPET also wants the government and the TSC to resolve the collapse of teachers’ medical cover and resolve the non-remittance of loans and National Social Security Fund deductions from teachers by TSC.
The Nyeri branch executive secretary has also advised parents to stay with their children at home until the union calls off the strike. Wanjohi said that the children are safer at home with their parents as opposed to schools where there are no teachers to look after them.
“We are advising parents to remain with their children at home where they are safe and avoid exposing them to security risks because there are no teachers to take care of them. The union will notify the parents when the strike ends and when it will be safer to release their children to school,” said Wanjohi.
By Wangari Mwangi
