The Central Organisation of Trade Unions waded in the dispute pitting the striking teachers and their employer, the Teachers Service Commission. On Wednesday, COTU Secretary-General Francis Atwoli called for the TSC to stop what he termed as “bullying” of teachers and their union, the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers, through the issuance of court orders.
This appeal follows the recent legal victory by TSC on August 27, in which the Employment and Labour Relations Court issued an order suspending the strike until a case filed by TSC is heard and determined. However, Atwoli contended that the court order had been overtaken by events owing to the interventions by the Ministry of Education.
Atwoli made a special call to the TSC CEO, Nancy Macharia, to sit down with the striking teachers and sign a return-to-work formula, citing that the ongoing strike had been detrimental to the students. He declared that COTU were in support of the teachers in strike, citing they were just enjoying their constitutional rights of protesting for what has already been honoured by the National Treasury.
Atwoli made the remarks after the Ministry of Education released Sh13.5 billion for the implementation of the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement, which covers the pending salaries for July and August, while Sh 18.7 billion had been set aside to convert the intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms.
Despite the court’s ruling, Kuppet has instructed its members to continue with the strike until all their issues are fully addressed, a sign that tension between the union and TSC is yet to be diffused.