Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) Secretary-General Collins Oyuu.
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) wants the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to repeal a regulation that prohibits interdicted and sacked teachers from receiving their benefits.
Knut Secretary-General Collins Oyuu says the union will push TSC to revoke the regulation to ensure that sacked teachers are paid their dues.
The union also wants teachers to get more benefits for their work.
Mr Oyuu said workers' retirement benefits should not be pegged on their behaviour.
Speaking at Kibaoni Primary School during a meeting with Knut members, he said the behaviour of an employee is not related to their benefits upon exit from service.
“If you make a mistake and you have been interdicted and dismissed, the TSC Act and the Code of Regulations for Teachers do not allow you to be paid anything. You will just go home,” said Mr Oyuu.
“In our proposal as a union, when you are dismissed for whatever reason, your behaviour has got nothing to do with your benefits. Whether you have killed someone or whichever case … the fact remains you worked for TSC for some years,” said the secretary-general.
He said TSC should pay dismissed teachers for the number of years they worked.
At the same time, he urged the National Assembly Budget and Appropriations Committee to allocate more funds to TSC for promotions and employment of more teachers.
Mr Oyuu told teachers in grades C2 and C3 and are acting head teachers or deputies not to expect to be promoted under the current structure.
“Some of our head teachers who have been acting were not interviewed by TSC. If a teacher does not qualify with a requisite grade to act, to be invited for an interview for administrative promotions…those with C2 and C3 forget about promotions, your time is being wasted. Just teach, stop acting,” he said during a meeting with union officials in Kilifi.
The union official said that some teachers have been issued letters by TSC to act as head teachers or their deputies but are not invited for promotions whenever interviews are advertised.
“They will tell you no because your grade is not yet there. Be bold enough. If your grade does not qualify you for an interview to take the position you are acting on, return those letters and continue teaching. Do not be cheated,” he said.
“When you are acting and you do not qualify for an interview you will remain frustrated. We have so many teachers who can act and they are not in those acting positions. Allow TSC to pick on teachers who can qualify to attend those interviews for promotions for administrative positions. Don't plant yourselves there for the name; you will be frustrated when the time comes,” said Mr Oyuu.
