Nairobi, Kenya | By Michael Wandati | The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) has decided to cancel the impending teachers’ strike that was set to begin on Monday, August 26. This decision was reached after a lengthy meeting held on Sunday by KNUT’s National Executive Council (NEC).
The union has opted to suspend the strike while ongoing discussions with the government continue to explore possible solutions.
“The NEC has, therefore, today August 25, 2024, agreed to withdraw the strike action notice which was elapsing midnight August 25, 2024 since we have commenced addressing the remaining matters administratively. In light of the latest developments, we direct our teachers to resume duty effective Monday, August 26, 2024,” KNUT announced in a statement signed by its Secretary General Collins Henry Oyuu.
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) announced its decision to suspend the planned strike after carefully evaluating the situation and the level of commitment demonstrated by the government, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), and teachers in advancing the education agenda.
While KNUT expressed reservations about some actions taken by the government and TSC to address urgent issues, the union acknowledged that there is a genuine intent to fulfill its demands. These demands include the permanent employment of 46,000 Junior Secondary School teachers, the promotion of 130,000 teachers, the immediate implementation of the second phase of the 2021/2025 amended Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between TSC and KNUT, and the prompt remittance of third-party deductions to their respective organizations.
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In discussions with TSC, the teachers’ employer indicated that it had already promoted 51,232 teachers, remitted the third-party deductions, and was in the process of implementing the amended CBA.
Despite not being fully satisfied with TSC’s responses, KNUT has agreed to call off the strike while continuing to monitor the progress on the unmet demands.
“Meanwhile we assure our members that the union is committed to resolve the matters herewith failure to which we shall revert to the initial position since the strike notice has only been withdrawn,” KNUT said.
