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Teachers are staring at a crisis after their Employer, Teachers Service Commission (TSC), revealed that it will not be able to implement the new pay hikes for teachers following the decision of the National Treasury to slash the Sh10.3 billion set aside for the exercise.

 The commission also told teachers that starting December this year, it will not offer insurance cover because no money has been provided to implement the third phase of the scheme.

The commission further stated that it will not also be able to promote and hire teachers on permanent and pensionable basis due to the cuts.

Appearing before MPs who sit in the Education committee chaired by Tinderet MP Julius Melly, TSC chairperson Nancy Macharia regretted that as at now the commission is only able to pay salaries for staff and teachers numbering about 420,000 following the National Treasury directive that they only spend 15 percent of their budgets.

 Said Macharia: “Sh10,281,147,858 has reduced the current budget. This reduction will impact compensation of teaching service employees.”

Macharia told the MPs that the Sh10.3 billion was to implement the second phase of the 2021-2025 amended CBA between the commission and the teachers’ unions.

She regretted that failure to honour the agreement will not only make them look dishonest but will also attract litigation as the agreement was deposited in court when they signed it.

National treasury

Efforts by the commission to reach out to the National treasury, she said, were not successful as, their letter requesting for the monies to be availed has not been responded to

Macharia further said, “when you sign a CBA you deposit it in court. With this now we shall have litigations from teachers’ unions and we will also be seen to be acting in bad faith because when they needed them to understand us we did, but now we are saying we cannot act on the part of our deal. We are appealing to you to help us so that we can implement this CBC.”

 She added: “There will be a lot of disruption that will affect learning in primary and post primary if we do not implement this one.”

 The Commission and union representatives comprising Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Kenya Union of Post Primary Education (KUPPET) and Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET) in August last year signed an agreement to amend the 2021-2025 CBA to include a salary increment of up to 9.5 percent spread over two years. The original version of the CBA did not have a monetary aspect.

 Aside from the basic pay increase, the other benefits include a house allowance for teachers under cluster four that is also payable in two financial years.

Global supply chains

 The 2021-2025 CBA was negotiated and executed during the Covid-19 pandemic that disrupted global supply chains causing reversal of prior monetary and fiscal policies.

 Macharia also clarified that the much awaited conversion of the Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers and hiring of intern teachers will only take place in October and January respectively and not July as they do not have adequate cash to implement the said directive,

 Macharia regretted that while the commission was ready to recruit the teachers immediately, she said that they can only access 15 per cent of their budget. On promotion of teachers, she regretted that the Sh 1 billion that had been set aside for the implementation exercise was also slashed.

Macharia at the same time dashed hope for P1 (Primary school) teachers to be employed after she disclosed that they are over-stuffed by over 18, 000 following the introduction of the Competency Based Curriculum (CBC).

 She said: “We can only spend what we have. The money we have can only pay salaries because we can only access 15 per cent of our budget. What are we to do yet we do not have warranty from the National treasury to spend?” She further regretted that the commission will not be able to provide medical cover for teachers if the proposed budget cuts are allowed to stand.

 The three-year teachers’ medical contract is currently in its second year of implementation with the third year expected to kick in from December 1 this year at a cost of Sh20.6 billion.

She said: “The current allocation is inadequate to enable the Commission to meet its financial commitment for Year three of the contract. “Further, there will be no group life, group personal accident and WIBA covers for teachers owing to lack of provision.”

Slashing budget

 But immediately she was done, committee members present took on the National Treasury for slashing the budget for the education sector accusing it of setting up the government with its citizens.

 A representative from the National Treasury who was present faced the wrath of the members who directed him to prepare an addendum reinstating the said monies and table it before the committee today ahead of the tabling of the estimates.