UASU announces strike of Lectures, University staff effective midnight

Nairobi, 

Monday, 28 October, 2024 

McCreadie Andias, 

All public university staff will down their tools at midnight after the government fails to honour return-to-work-formula signed in September, UASU has announced on Monday. 

The return-to-work formula was signed on September 26, 2024 by the unions, IPUCCF, Ministries of Labour, Social Protection and Ministry of Education.

The Union's Secretary-General Constantine Wasonga has expressed displeasure accusing of failing to negotiate, conclude, register and implement the Collective Bargaining Agreements for for the cycles 2013-2017, 2021-2025 across all public universities and constituent colleges.

In the arrangement as per the 2021-2025 CBA, the minimum pay for graduate assistants should be between Sh63,647 and Sh97,988. For assistant lecturers, it ranges between Sh107,872 and Sh166,072. Professors are to earn a monthly salary of between Sh 224, 631 and Sh345,816.

UASU argues that this is as per the law and the Recognition Agreement executed on October 28, 2019 between UASU and the Inter-Public Universities’ Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF).

During a press release last week, Dr Wasonga said dons feel cheated after the government failed to honour their end of the bargain.

“Whereas the unions wanted the RTWF implemented to be implemented as was signed and simulated by the Technical committee at Machakos University from September 30 to October 4, 2024, the Government introduced a global figure of Sh4.3 billion that is not on the RTWF to cover the two years,” he stated.

According to union officials, they called off the strike after signing an agreement in September that ended a two weeks’ strike.

The employer agreed to pay the basic monthly salary and incorporate an increment of between seven to 10 percent in October salaries.

However, Dr Wasonga said the government has failed to operationalise and implement the CBA.

“Our members expected the new salaries this week. We’re not going to shy away from calling another strike. Implement a return to work formula or we are back to the streets. We’re giving the government only one week before we return to the streets,” said Dr Wasonga.

The failure by the government, the union said, is not only causing unnecessary tension and anxiety in the universities but also threatening to disrupt industrial peace.

This came only a month later after they had called off their nationwide go-slow after striking a return-to-work formula with the government, through the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection in September.

The lecturers had downed their tools on September 18, citing delays in finalizing the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the government.

When the lecturers agreed to call off their initial strike, the government agreed to fast-track total operationalisation of the return to work formula.