Learning in all public universities in the country might grind to a halt after the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) issued a 7-day strike notice which ends on September 18.
This is after, during negotiations with the Inter-Public Universities Council Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) failed to commit to the 2021-2025 Collective Bargain Agreement (CBA) that was signed by the two parties in 2021.
Speaking during a stakeholder meeting in Kakamega today, UASU Secretary General Constantine Wesonga revealed that over 30,000 university employees will down their tools from the said date over the CBA which was meant to see the lecturers receive increased pay.
Wesonga revealed that despite conducting 10 meetings with relevant authorities, nothing had been implemented yet.
“I convened a National Executive Council meeting that gave me the authority to issue a strike notice and our strike notice will be served to the respective government authorities and the national strike is going to officially commence on September 18, 2024,” he said.
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He further faulted the SRC for introducing percentile without public participation, a new factor that has not been used in any CBA negotiations since the inception of UASU which has affected the negotiations.
The union’s grievances include delayed salaries, failure to pay their full salaries and remit statutory deductions.
This will be the second strike notice by UASU in just over a month after the union called its members to strike on August 6 2024 in universities that have been facing various problems and third-party deductions, including loans, insurance premiums, and pension contributions.
By Vostine Ratemo and Jane Riana
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