The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) is expressing its discontent with the recent decision made by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) regarding the registration of Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers.
TSC’s alleged move to enroll JSS teachers under the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) instead of Knut has prompted a strong response from Knut.
Mercy Ndung’u, the 2nd National Women Representative of Knut, has labeled this action as a severe provocation.
She firmly believes that the JSS teachers, who have been deployed to teach in public primary schools, should be automatically considered members of Knut. The decision to join Kuppet should be entirely voluntary, according to her.
Ndung’u emphatically stated, “We are telling TSC to stop meddling in the affairs of teachers’ trade unions in the country and let the newly recruited JSS tutors join a union of their choice as members.”
She further asserted that the alleged move by TSC is not only unjust but also appears to be a deliberate attempt to weaken Knut’s bargaining power when advocating for the rights and welfare of its members.
In response to this situation, Knut has issued a warning that it may seek legal remedies through the courts if TSC continues its pursuit of removing over 30,000 JSS teachers from Knut membership.
This protest was officially voiced during a press conference held at Bishop Delany Mixed Secondary School in Eldoret, where the Eldoret West Knut branch Annual General Meeting took place.
The event was attended by union branch leaders from the South Rift and North Rift regions, under the leadership of Sammy Bor, the National Executive Council Rift Valley regional representative.
The concern raised by Knut stems from reports that several JSS teachers who had initially enrolled as Knut members were allegedly removed from the union’s database.
Sammy Bor, who also serves as the Executive Secretary of the union’s Eldoret East branch, has accused TSC of attempting to deprive the union of the resources necessary to effectively serve its members across the country.
Bor indicated that Knut plans to address this matter by formally contacting Dr. Nancy Macharia, the Chief Executive Officer of TSC, to request an explanation for the transfer of JSS teachers to Kuppet without their consent.
Bor has described TSC’s actions as questionable, as it appears to employ dubious methods to divert newly recruited members from Knut to other unions, which Knut deems unacceptable.
Bor emphasized the importance of TSC maintaining a neutral stance on matters related to trade unions for the sake of industrial harmony and fairness.
