Deductions from teachers who are not members of either of the two national unions will now be shared according to a percentage to be agreed by Teachers' Service Commission (TSC).
The Employment and Labour Relations Court has ordered the teachers' employer to release monies held in its accounts to Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (KUPPET), ending a dispute on who should get the monies from non-union post primary school teachers.
Labour Court Principal Judge Nduma Nderi nullified an order issued by Labour Cabinet Secretary Kazungu Kambi in which he directed TSC to channel all deductions from non-union teachers to KUPPET.
"It is wrong, unlawful and inequitable for the Cabinet Secretary to issue an order directing deduction and payment of agency fees from all unionisable teachers in post primary institutions who are not members of any union to KUPPET to the exclusion of KNUT," justice Nderi ruled.
KNUT had lamented that Kambi disregarded a collective bargaining agreement signed between TSC and the two unions after the 2013 nationwide strike.
The court heard that in the CBA agreement, KNUT was given the green light to claim agency fees from the teachers. It was further agreed that the union, being older than KUPPET had members who were in both primary and post-primary schools and thus ought to have had monies from its members who were spread across board.
KUPPET was also allowed to claim a share of the money from post-primary school teachers only.
Justice Nderi held that the two unions should get their share according to the number of teachers they have recruited as members.
"Most importantly, the percentage of agency fees payable to each union from the unionisable teachers in post-primary school institutions is proportional to the percentage of members belonging to each union for reasons of equity and justice,'' he ruled.
Both unions in their respective submissions did not deny that they were entitled to deductions from post-primary school teachers, underpinned by separate agreements that had been signed before the court.
KNUT concluded a return to work formula agreement with TSC on July 18, 2013. KUPPET penned theirs seven days before.
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