Saturday, July 6, 2013

Big split as Kenya National Union of Teachers rejects pay deal

Updated Friday, July 5th 2013 at 23:39 GMT +3
By Vitalis Kimutai and Augustine Oduor
KENYA: The division between Kenya’s two teachers unions persists as one ends its strike for better allowances while its larger rival insists on pushing on.
The Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers, which has about 47,000 members, accepted an offer from the Government and ended their strike. They walk away with commuter allowances for all teachers and responsibility allowances for those who have additional duties. They will also be paid their salaries for last month.
A return-to-work formula was signed between Kuppetand the Teachers Service Commission, which employs public sector educators, at TSC’s headquarters in Nairobi.
Officials from the Treasury, the Labour and Education ministries, and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission witnessed the deal.
But the Kenya National Union of Teachers ( Knut) separately rejected President Uhuru’s plea to them to return to class and vowed to continue with nationwide strike until their demands are met.
Knut, representing more than 200,000 teachers, dismissed the deal between Government and Kuppet as inferior. They asked Attorney General Githu Muigai, who has appealed to teachers to obey court orders to return to class, to keep off teachers’ affairs. They said he was misadvising the President on the contentious legal notices number 534 of 1997 and number 16 of 2003.
Representatives TSC Chief Executive Gabriel Lengoiboni led the Government side in signing the agreement while Kuppet was represented by Secretary General Akello Misori, national chairman Omboko Milemba and Treasurer Mwethi Njenga.
“The Government will address issues relating to harmonisation of commuter and responsibility allowances with those of civil servants alongside Special Needs School allowances and comprehensive medical cover to be offered by National Housing Insurance Fund (NHIF),” Mr Lengoiboni said during the signing ceremony.
But house and leave allowances, which both unions wanted implemented, would be referred to SRC chaired by Sarah Serem. Under the 1997 deal, house allowances would be pegged at 50 per cent of salary and leave allowances at ten per cent. Both would be paid to all teachers.
Lengoiboni said the Government would also employ 10,000 additional teachers and provide money for promotions of those moving to next job groups as demanded by Kuppet. The harmonisation will pave the way for signing of a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the Government and Kuppet, which is expected to be deposited at the Industrial Court on July 15 when parties will report on progress of the negotiations.
“Signing of the agreement sets in motion legal engagements between Kuppet and the Government on the dispute because there had not been a formal negotiation after the strike was called,” Mr Misori said. “This is a bold move by the union. We are asking our members to report to work on Monday, as the Government has pledged to provide adequate security.”
Cabinet Secretary for Labour Kazungu Kambi brokered the deal on Thursday evening barely an hour after Uhuru addressed the nation and called on teachers to abide by Industrial Court orders to return to work as the Government negotiates with the unions.
The deal entails implementation of commuter allowances totalling Sh11.5 billion, responsibility allowances of Sh3.9 billion, comprehensive medical allowances under the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), Special Needs Schools Allowances, responsibility allowances, recruitment of additional 10,000 teachers. It will also see June salaries withheld over the strike released.
Mr Kambi said he appreciated Kuppet’s move to respect the rule of law and expressed optimism thatKnut would follow suit.
“The unionists are nationalists who want the issues addressed once and for all so that the country can move forward,” said Mr Kambi.
“We chose the path of negotiation as it is the best way to deliver on the mandate of the union based on social dialogue being a major component of Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs),” Misori said.
“The negotiations were also based on trust. It should be known that obedience to the law is not cowardice.
Our courts, being institutions of equity and justice, give us rulings which at time may not be pleasant but at (other) times they may give us what we want in accordance to the Constitution.”
Kuppet’s national organising secretary Paul Maingi, vice chairman Julius Korir, Deputy Secretary General Moses Nthurima, women representative Catherine Wambilianga, Secretary in charge of secondary schools Edward Obwocha and Sammy Chelanga in charge of tertiary institutions were in attendance.
Release pay
Addressing the Press yesterday, Knut acting Secretary General Mudzo Nzili asked the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to release last month’s pay immediately. But Mr Lengoiboni said only Kuppet members will get their salaries for last month. He also said teachers who will have obeyed the court order shall also have their money in the bank. “That deal is a waste of time and money,” said Nzili. “The strike will remain until our demands are met. We wonder where the money has come to pay several issues that teachers did not demand for.”
He accused the State of engaging in selective negotiations with one union yet the end result of the talks will benefit all the 278,000 teachers.
Nzili said the union respects the President because he has always been a friend of teachers but asked him to vet his advisers on education matters. “The AG should steer away from this labour dispute as he is not a party (to it). He is now interfering with TSC which is an independent constitutional commission,” said Nzili.
They also asked the President to ensure teachers are not intimidated because they have refused to return to work. Knut national chairman Wilson Sossion, Wycliffe Omuchei and Albanus Mutisya flanked Nzili.
Sossion said the union has not been served with any court order and noted that the officials cannot be accused of contempt of court.
“They are still intimidating us and they now also want our building to be auctioned,” he said.
Knut has demanded the full implementation of legal notice 534 of 1997 that factored in a raft of allowances that they say were amended by the contentious legal notice No 16 of 2003.

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