KUPPET accuses TSC of 'lip service' on teacher promotions

Kuppet Secretary General Akelo Misori (Centre) his deputy Moses Nthurima and National vice chairman Julius Korir during a press briefing on May 14, 2025. [David Gichuru,Standard]

The Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) has accused the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) of failing to address the long-standing problem of teacher stagnation.

Kuppet say, despite the government moving decisively to promote thousands of police officers in similar circumstances tutors remain in same job for many years.

KUPPET Secretary-General Akelo Misori criticised the TSC for subjecting teachers to "four or five interviews for the same position" even after years of service.

Many stagnated teachers, he noted, were in the former Job Groups L and M now Teacher Scales C3 and C5 who have not been promoted since 2009 or 2011, despite some having acquired advanced degrees at their own expense.

"The TSC should be ashamed. When these grades were converted in 2016, the commission deluded itself that this was a promotion when it was simply a re-designation," Misori said.

He compared the TSC's inaction to the NPSC's proactive approach, noting that while the police service employs about 150,000 officers, the TSC manages over 400,000 teachers yet has not implemented a similar motivation framework.

"When you keep such a large workforce under this kind of demotivating environment, it means you don't care about what makes this nation's education," he said.

KUPPET now plans to submit to the TSC a fresh list of all teachers who have stagnated in one grade for 10 years or more, demanding their immediate promotion without further interviews.

"Following the positive example set by the police commission, the TSC must not be left behind," Misori said.

The union's renewed push sets the stage for another round of confrontation with the TSC over promotions an issue that has been a sore point in teacher-employer relations for more than a decade.

The union praised the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) for its newly approved policy to promote officers who have been in one job group for more than 10 years, or are aged above 50, without the need for interviews or declaration of vacancies.

The plan, endorsed by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, will benefit constables, corporals, sergeants and inspectors, alongside advanced training and professional development opportunities.

Misori said the decision "has really exposed" the TSC, which he accused of "paying lip service to the subject for many years."

"The National Police Service Commission's concrete action cements our view that the TSC is not doing its best to advocate for teachers within the government," he said.