The Kenya National Union of Teachers has confirmed that the umbrella body, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) signed a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for 2025, unlocking a pay rise deal for teachers.
KNUT secretary general Collins Oyuu made the revelation on behalf of his members during the Kisumu City union branch Annual General Meeting at Rabuor Primary School on Saturday. Oyuu said the union walked away with a salary deal of between 12 percent and 29.5 percent where the lowest cadre, he said, will benefit more.
The union, Oyuu said, had proposed a 60 percent increment, but the SRC, he said, stood its ground.
He lamented that the work of the SRC ought to be advisory and not dictatorial.
Oyuu also wondered why the promotion letters of teachers who had been moved to the next level had not yet been released.
He said the Sh 2.5 billion meant for the promotions must be put to use.
According to Oyuu, the agreement favours teachers in lower cadres, especially those in job groups B5, C1, C2, and C3, in line with the advice by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).
Oyuu, however, did not hesitate to lash out at the SRC for dictating things, including to the members of parliament.
He stated that teachers who are fired for any reason will henceforth be entitled to pensions and other benefits, unlike before, when they would lose them.
Also in attendance at the AGM were members of parliament, namely Rosa Buyu (Kisumu West), Aduma Owuor (Nyakach), and Dr Joshua Oron (Kisumu Central).
TSC has awarded the lowest teacher in Grade B5 a basic salary increment of Sh. 7,313 spread in four years.
The teacher who used to earn a minimum of sh. A basic salary of 23,830 will now be increased to 28,620 per month.
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Kuppet, Knut, and Kusnet have appended their signatures to the deal, ushering in new salary changes in the July payroll.
The Commission, however, has not revised the allowances paid to teachers, which unions had wanted raised to cushion teachers from the effects of inflation.
The Commission has only increased the rates for payment of the baggage allowance.
All other existing allowances will remain unchanged as TSC plans to review the Career Progression Guidelines (CPG) in June 2026.
The Commission has thanked President William Ruto for his support in announcing a raft of goodies to be unveiled in the 2025/2026 Financial Year. These include; recruitment of additional teachers, promotion of teachers across all cadres at a cost and re-tooling of Senior School teachers.
Furthermore, as a result of the government’s investment in the teaching service, TSC and unions signed a CBA on Friday, July 18, with all teacher unions, whose total cost is Sh33,753,372,108 net, for a period of four years.
The first phase of the new CBA will be effective from July, 1, 2025, for 8.4 billion in salaries and allowances, with more than Sh1.2 billion being the employer’s contribution to the teacher’s Pension Scheme and other statutory deductions.
To address the concerns raised by teachers through their unions, and following extensive negotiations, the Commission has awarded a salary increment of up to 20.5% for various staff cadres.
By Fredrick Odiero
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