- Teachers’ unions once commanded national attention and significantly influenced education policy through strong leadership and principled advocacy.
- Today, unions must evolve beyond salary negotiations to become credible policy institutions that shape education reforms.
- Rebuilding teachers’ confidence, public trust and professional leadership is essential to strengthening Kenya’s education system.
There was a time when the mere announcement of a nationwide teachers’ strike sent shockwaves through government. Cabinet meetings were convened urgently, negotiators worked around the clock, and the nation watched anxiously as schools remained closed. Teachers’ unions were not merely labour organisations; they were influential national institutions whose voices shaped education policy, safeguarded teachers’ welfare and held governments accountable.
That era produced leaders whose names became synonymous with courage and conviction. Ambrose Adeya Adongo and David Okuta Osiany transformed the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) into a formidable force that governments approached with caution and respect. Their leadership was anchored in solidarity, principled negotiation and an unwavering commitment to teachers’ welfare.
Later, Wilson Sossion carried forward that tradition of fearless advocacy, while Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) leaders Mudzo Nzili, Akelo Misori and Omboko Milemba strengthened the voice of post-primary school teachers.
Whether admired or criticised for their methods, these leaders demonstrated that a union’s greatest assets are the confidence of its members, the trust of the public and the courage to defend the profession without fear or favour.
The legacy of fearless unionism
The strength of teachers’ unions was demonstrated repeatedly through industrial action.
The 1997 nationwide strike compelled the Government of President Daniel arap Moi to negotiate, resulting in significant salary improvements.
Under President Mwai Kibaki, unions remained vigilant, pressing the Government to honour commitments on remuneration and working conditions while the country expanded access to education through Free Primary Education.
A defining moment came during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration. In 2015, teachers embarked on what remains Kenya’s longest nationwide teachers’ strike, lasting five weeks after the Employment and Labour Relations Court awarded a 50–60 per cent salary increase.
Public schools remained closed, millions of learners stayed at home and the dispute evolved into a national debate on labour rights, public finance, judicial authority and constitutional governance.
Although the Supreme Court later overturned the salary award, the strike demonstrated the influence teachers’ unions could command when united.
The tradition of assertive unionism extended to higher education through the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU), led by figures such as Prof. Muga K’Olale and later Dr Constantine Wasonga.
The Kenya Universities Staff Union (KUSU) also consistently championed the welfare of non-teaching staff, reinforcing the role of organised labour in Kenya’s education sector.
Beyond salaries
These struggles demonstrate that education unions have never fought solely for salaries.
At their best, they have defended the integrity of public education by advocating adequate funding, fair recruitment, professional development, academic freedom, improved learning environments and policies that protect both educators and learners.
Teachers’ unions must therefore remain actively engaged in all national issues affecting education.
Education is directly influenced by national economic policy, taxation, budget allocations, healthcare, housing, pensions, technology, infrastructure, labour legislation, environmental sustainability and national security.
Every major Government decision ultimately affects the classroom.
When education funding is reduced, schools experience resource shortages. Inflation erodes teachers’ purchasing power. Changes in healthcare policies affect medical benefits, while pension reforms influence retirement security.
Similarly, technological advances require teachers to adapt continuously, and weak governance or corruption often translates into overcrowded classrooms, deteriorating infrastructure and declining learning outcomes.
The need for modern unionism
Teachers’ unions can no longer afford to focus exclusively on salary negotiations every few years.
They should evolve into respected policy institutions capable of commissioning research, proposing evidence-based reforms, scrutinising education budgets, monitoring policy implementation, contributing to legislative debates and defending every child’s constitutional right to quality education.
Modern unions should equally invest in leadership development, continuous professional training, financial literacy, legal support, mental wellness programmes, digital skills, mentorship for young teachers and retirement planning.
Such initiatives would restore members’ confidence while strengthening the profession’s standing within society.
Young teachers deserve particular attention because they enter classrooms at a time of rapid technological change, curriculum reforms and increasingly complex learner needs.
A forward-looking union should prepare them not merely to survive but to lead.
Equally important is rebuilding public trust.
Teachers’ unions are strongest when parents and communities appreciate that advocating for teachers is inseparable from advocating for quality education.
Better-supported teachers produce better learning outcomes, and stronger schools build stronger nations.
The days when governments trembled simply because schools closed may belong to history.
Today’s influence is earned through strategic engagement, sound research, constructive dialogue, institutional credibility and the ability to shape public policy before conflict arises.
The firebrand leaders of yesterday leave an enduring lesson.
Their greatest achievement was not the strikes they organised but the respect they commanded and the unity they inspired.
Their courage transformed teachers’ unions into institutions that governments could neither ignore nor undermine.
That remains the challenge before today’s union leadership.
They must reclaim that moral authority not by living in the past but by responding boldly to present realities.
A strong teachers’ union should not merely react to Government decisions. It should help shape them.
It should not simply defend teachers during crises. It should anticipate challenges, influence national policy and remain an indispensable partner in building an equitable, prosperous and knowledge-driven Kenya.
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Only then will teachers’ unions roar once again—not through confrontation alone, but through leadership, vision and an unwavering commitment to the future of education.
By Hillary Muhalya
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