Teachers’ employer invites union for talks on new CBA as existing one expires
The Teachers Service Commission Acting CEO Eveleen Mitei before the National Assembly Committee on Education at Bunge Tower in Nairobi on Thursday, June 19, 2025.
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is expected to begin negotiations with the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) on the new 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Acting TSC chief executive Evaleen Mitei has scheduled a meeting for July 1, 2025 at the commission’s offices where a counteroffer is expected to be presented to Knut in response to its demands for improved pay and working conditions.
“The Commission invites you to a consultative meeting on CBA 2025–2029 on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at 9am at the Commission Chairman’s Boardroom,” Ms Mitei stated in a letter to the union’s Secretary-General Collins Oyuu dated June 24, 2025.
Former TSC chief executive Dr Nancy Macharia, whose term officially ends on June 30, proceeded on terminal leave without signing the CBA with Knut and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet).
The recruitment of a new CEO was recently put on hold after the Employment and Labour Relations Court issued interim orders freezing the process following a petition alleging bias in the hiring. This led to the appointment of Ms Mitei, who was the Director of Teacher Discipline Management, as acting CEO.
Knut has urged the commission to prioritise the review and signing of the new CBA. “We urge Ms Mitei to prioritise the negotiations and signing of the new 2025–2029 CBA with KNUT, as required by the country’s labour laws,” said Mr Oyuu.
Teachers Service Commission (TSC) Headquarters in Upper Hill, Nairobi on June 21, 2025.
The union is proposing a 60 percent salary increment, a 30 per cent rise in allowances, and an enhanced medical cover for teachers.
It is also pushing for acting allowances for teachers appointed to positions but not yet confirmed. Knut wants teachers who have served in acting positions for over six months to be confirmed. Teachers appointed to act as principals, deputy principals, heads of institutions and their deputies have remained in those roles without confirmation for years—an issue that has long been contentious between the unions and the TSC.
The union is also demanding extraneous allowances for teachers, citing that they are the only group of public workers who work during official and non-official hours, including weekends and evenings, often carrying marking work home.
The union further wants the commission to pay risk allowances to teachers across the country, a leave allowance equivalent to one month’s salary per year, financial compensation for working on public holidays, overtime allowances, and sabbatical leave for academic research.
Additionally, Knut wants teachers seeking elective positions in general or by-elections to be allowed to take leave and return to work if unsuccessful, rather than being forced to resign as is currently required by law.
The 2021–2025 CBA, now nearing its expiry, was non-monetary, owing to what the government cited as economic hardship caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Knut had actively engaged with TSC to negotiate a deal that would benefit teachers under those constraints.
In that CBA, maternity leave was extended from 90 to 120 days, and paternity leave from 14 to 21 days. These were the only notable benefits awarded. However, in the last financial year, the government offered teachers and other civil servants a 10 percent salary increase.
Dr Macharia’s tenure as CEO was marked by longstanding disputes with teachers’ unions, many of which ended up in court. Several court orders in favour of teachers were never implemented, and the unions have accused her of failing to honour CBAs for over a decade, despite funds being released by the Treasury. Teachers have held multiple strikes to force the TSC to comply.
In her exit statement, Dr Macharia praised the expansion of TSC services under her leadership. She noted the establishment of 394 sub-county offices and the construction of TSC offices in Bomet, Machakos, and Kilifi, with further offices planned in Kwale, Murang’a, and Kitui.
“Teacher registration, recruitment, promotion, and intra-regional transfers have been fully decentralised, and digitisation of services has been implemented,” Dr Macharia stated.
She said key programmes requiring strategic focus include the newly rolled-out remote learning methodologies and the digitisation and automation of records and functions.