NAIROBI: Teachers have now supported job evaluation exercise on condition that it shall not affect the current salary review efforts at the Industrial Court.
The two teachers unions yesterday said they shall support the exercise if its findings will be used for future reward of teachers and not now.
Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) officials said they have never opposed the exercise.
“Job evaluations have no connection with the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and so we cannot stop it from going on,” Knut Secretary General Wilson Sossion told a consultative meeting organised by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).
The SRC forum was aimed at getting Cabinet secretaries and teachers unions to understand the exercise while seeking their support and co-operation. Present were CS’s Jacob Kaimenyi (Education), Fred Matiang’i (Information), Hassan Wario (Sports), Phyllis Kandie (Tourism), James Macharia (Health), Charity Ngilu (lands), and National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi.
The officials expressed the urgency of fast track job evaluation, saying it must be transparent. However, questions were raised on whether the exercise shall affect the private sector where pay disparities are said to be huge.
“If the exercise will enhance future CBA’s then we support it. So if its done well we also want to know the job description of school heads, their deputies and classroom teachers,” said Sossion.
Kuppet Secretary General Akelo Misori said the union has never opposed job evaluation.
“What we disagreed about is pegging teacher’s pay on such an exercise in a manner that would affect the current exercise,” said Mr Misori.
The SRC has in the past resisted any attempts to raise teachers’ pay saying it must await a comprehensive job evaluation. SRC boss Sarah Serem yesterday said the evaluation will be participatory and will have ministries, public institutions and state corporations nominate officers who will take part in the actual job analysis, job description and job evaluation. Serem said the exercise shall lead to rationalisation of wage structure.
The Standard Group Plc is a
multi-media organization with investments in media platforms spanning newspaper
print operations, television, radio broadcasting, digital and online services. The
Standard Group is recognized as a leading multi-media house in Kenya with a key
influence in matters of national and international interest.
join