Striking teachers dig in as the State takes tough stance
What you need to know:
Teachers said they would stay away from classrooms until their demands are met even as the government said negotiations would only begin after teachers obey a court order to return to work.
On Tuesday, the Industrial Court ruled that teachers report back to school and open dialogue with the government as the strike entered the second week.
The standoff between teachers and the government deepened Tuesday with few public secondary schools resuming classes after the mid-term break as primary schools remained shut.
Teachers said they would stay away from classrooms until their demands are met even as the government said negotiations would only begin after teachers obey a court order to return to work.
‘‘There are no teachers who have reported back to classes countrywide, any sensible court cannot give such a ruling, that was an insult to teachers,’’ Kenya National Union of Teachers chairman Wilson Sossion said.
He said the strike would be called off only after the government sets aside money to employ more teachers and pays the allowances at the heart of the strike.
Education Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi said that teachers should respect and obey the court ruling.
“You can’t overturn the court ruling; teachers should engage us in dialogue. We have to respect the court decision,’’ said Prof Kaimenyi.
On Tuesday, the Industrial Court ruled that teachers report back to school and open dialogue with the government as the strike entered the second week.
Mr Sossion said that the government was yet to call teachers to the negotiating table, insisting that the union had not been served with court papers to end the strike, a matter Prof Kaimenyi declined to comment on.
“I can’t comment on that, the court ruling is very clear,’’ Prof Kaimenyi said. The union wants the government to increase the salary of teachers by 70 per cent to cater for housing, medical and commuter allowances agreed on in 1997.
The government insists that it does not have the Sh46 billion needed to effect an agreement apparently substituted in 2003 with another through which teachers have been paid Sh32 billion.
The proposed allowances include a medical cover of 20 per cent,10 per cent commuter and 50 per cent housing.
Knut also wants the government to set aside Sh15.2 billion for recruiting 40,000 teachers. Knut, Teso branch, asked private schools to join in the strike and negotiate terms with school sponsors.
Some union officials moved around the district ejecting private school teachers from class and sending pupils away. This forced some private schools in Kakamega County to send children home.
Public schools in the area remained empty as teachers accused the government of trying to table a new deal without implementing the previous CBA.
The Salaries and Remuneration Commission had set June as the deadline for signing new collective bargaining agreements.
