TSC issues disciplinary letters to striking teachers as strike bites

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has now started disciplinary action against 5,000 head of schools over alleged negligence of duty.

TSC chair Lydia Nzomo said the letters were issued following an earlier warning that disciplinary action would be taken against any teacher who absconds duty.

The teachers’ employer further said the 5,000 heads of schools must write show cause letters to it as they have binding contracts.

Ms. Nzomo further said that TSC has the mandate to penalize teachers who fail to adhere to the set rules and regulations and that the public must get value for money.

She termed the teachers’ demand for a 50 – 60% pay rise as unreasonable saying that TSC is not answerable to teachers but has a constitutional obligation to uphold order and discipline in schools.

The disciplinary action against the served teachers, according to TSC, will commence immediately and might see some teachers replaced.

Te commission added that teachers should report to school as they await the ruling of the Court of Appeal on whether the salary increment should be effected or not.

TSC had cautioned teachers against participating in the ongoing strike which has paralyzed learning in public schools across the country.

Speaking at the commission’s head offices on Wednesday, Nzomo said that the commission will provide security to teachers who will report to work.

Nzomo’s statement comes just hours after teachers held a prayer meeting at Uhuru Park in a bid to push the government to effect the 50 to 60 percent pay hike awarded by courts.

The prayer rally was organized by workers umbrella body COTU and Trade Union Congress of Kenya (TUC-K).

Learning in public schools ground to a halt two weeks ago after the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) failed to give teachers the 50 to 60 per cent pay increment that was awarded by the industrial court.

On Tuesday, Deputy President William Ruto was holed up in a meeting, the second of its kind, with senior government officials in the education sector in a bid to resolve the ongoing teachers strike.

The meeting, that included Education Cabinet Secretary Prof Jacob Kaimenyi and top Teachers Service Commission (TSC) officials, came in the wake of the education crisis that has seen some schools in Murang’a County resort to using volunteer teachers to assist candidates prepare for national exams.

The government has all along maintained its position through the Ministry of Education and the TSC that the teachers strike was unprocedural and therefore illegal.