- KNUT Keiyo Branch has condemned the alleged forceful transfer of its members to KUPPET and KUSNET without their consent.
- Secretary General Anthony Kimurto has accused TSC of conspiring with rival unions and has demanded the immediate reversal of the transfers.
- The union has urged affected teachers to report to KNUT branch offices and has warned it will pursue legal and industrial action to protect its membership.
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Keiyo Branch, has condemned what it termed as illegal poaching of its members to the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET).
Branch Secretary General Anthony Kimurto said teachers who were deployed to Junior Schools were moved to the rival union without their consent, terming the act illegal and against labour laws.
Speaking to the press in Iten, Kimurto said the affected teachers were shocked to find that they had been moved to KUPPET without signing any membership forms or giving authorisation for the transfer. “We condemn with the strongest terms possible the forceful transfer of our members to KUPPET. Our members were shocked to find that they have been moved to KUPPET without their consent,” he said.
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He noted that membership to a trade union is voluntary and protected under the Constitution and the Labour Relations Act, and that any forceful transfer amounts to a violation of teachers’ rights.
The Keiyo Branch Secretary General condemned the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for allegedly conspiring with rival unions to forcefully move its members, adding that the decision must be reverted and the affected teachers taken back to KNUT. “We call upon the TSC to relent and revert back our members to KNUT with immediate effect. Those moved to KUSNET and KUPPET must be reverted back in the next payroll. Teachers must be allowed to freely choose the union of their choice,” Kimurto said.
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He warned that KNUT will not sit back as its members are irregularly moved, saying the union will pursue all legal and industrial avenues to protect its membership.
Kimurto urged teachers who were affected to report to the KNUT Branch offices countrywide for assistance in reclaiming their rightful union membership.
By Philemon Kiprop
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