KNUT branch in massive member recruitment drive

Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Bomet branch has embarked on an aggressive recruitment exercise that seeks to increase its membership to 5,000 by close of this year.
With a current membership of about 3,500, Branch Executive Committee has appealed to teachers within the region to join the union.
Branch Executive Secretary Malel Lang’at observed that this will enable the members gain immensely from various benefits accrued from the union.
The union has a better bargaining power to negotiate teachers improved remuneration and other benefits. “Those who join the union stand a better chance to benefit from the salary increment the union negotiates with the employer, TSC,” he said.
Besides, members are able to benefit in other spheres such as social and economic spheres. For example, when a member dies, the union contributes greatly to take care of the bereaved families. “We join the bereaved families and offer moral support if they lose one of their own who happens to be our union member,” noted Malel.
There are about 7,000 teachers in the county arguing that with increased campaigns, they will hit the target.
Membership of the union, he argued, is critical to the performance of its activities, adding that they have taken upon themselves a serious duty to recruit members.
The branch has already made strides, with Malel revealing that early childhood representatives will soon join the union. “We are among the few branches that have brought on board post primary branch executive committee members,” he added.
He stated that according to a report in their office, the branch has many unionisable teachers who are not members of the union yet they are the ones enjoying the sweat of KNUT struggles.
“The branch got a blow which saw its numbers decrease with the TSC validation exercise conducted in 2015. “The introduction of the membership validation process by TSC in 2015 affected its membership and in as much as the exercise was stopped, some teachers who withdrew membership through the exercise have been reinstated,” he said.
– Azael Masese