The Kenya Union of Technical and Vocational Education Trainers (KUTVET) has given the government four days to scrap a planned payroll transfer for technical trainers, threatening to call a strike from next Wednesday if the plan is not withdrawn.
Speaking at a press briefing on Wednesday, November 11, Secretary General Kepher Oguwi said trainers cannot be paid by the colleges instead of a structured government system.
"We are giving them 4 days to withdraw all those plans," he said.
The union wants the government to drop proposals that would shift payment and employment of trainers from the Public Service Commission (PSC) to national polytechnic councils.
Oguwi warned that the plan could put learning and exam marking in TVET centres at risk if the correct procedures are not followed.
"We are going to paralyse exam marking and all learning-related activities in all TVET centres until the correct procedures are undertaken," he said.
According to the union, the dispute affects between 10,000 and 12,000 public TVET trainers across Kenya.
Kenya Today reports that KUTVET has also warned of legal action.
The standoff is the latest in a series of disputes between the union and the Ministry of Education.
In September, KUTVET issued a 21-day strike notice over exams, curriculum changes, medical cover and transfers, before the strike was called off after the ministry agreed to address grievances.
The union says the stalemate stems from three draft documents prepared without adequate consultation.
Education CS Julius Ogamba has previously positioned TVET as central to Kenya's shift to a skills-driven economy, which makes any disruption in the sector highly sensitive.
A strike would hit learners directly, since the union says marking and all learning activities would stop.
It remains to be seen whether the Ministry of Education or the PSC will respond before the deadline lapses.
Parents and students in technical institutions will be watching closely as the strike date of next Wednesday, November 18, draws near.
The union insists it will not back down until the government fully follows what it calls the correct procedures.
Link:
https://www.facebook.com/share/1KCyJA57du/
Leave a Reply