Why varsity staff may not get Sh6.6b pay boom this month

Universities Academic Staff Union national chairman Muga K'Olale, Secretary General Constantine Wasonga (C) and vice chair Joseph Mberia (R) in Nairobi on January 17, 2020. [Edward Kiplimo,Standard]

Shock awaits more than 30,000 university workers as vice chancellors and unions fight over the release of Sh6.6 billion salary boom that is due end of this month.

This is part of the disputed Sh8.8 billion in 2017-21 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed between unions and universities management in October 2019.

Members of the University Academic Staff Union (Uasu), Kenya University Staff Union (Kusu) and Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Educational Institutions Hospital and Allied (Kudheiha) were to benefit from the money at the end of this month.

Payment of the salary raise at the end of this month would have ended a long wait for the 23.14 per cent and 25.07 per cent salary increments for staff, which was to be honoured by November 2019.

This may, however, not happen as unions and the universities management continue to engage in intense back and forth disagreements locking the salary award.

Two weeks after MPs passed the workers money through a Supplementary Budget, VCs now want the cash only released after both parties sign and deposit a CBA in court.

Alternatively, the VCs insist that the money be released after an interim implementation plan between the unions and universities is drafted, agreed upon and signed.

Vice Chancellors Committee Chairperson Geoffrey Muluvi, in a May 5 letter, has instructed all VCs to note that the CBAs have not been registered and that no interim agreement has been signed.

“During a meeting of VCs and principals of constituent colleges held virtually on April 23 it was agreed that implementation of the CBA for Uasu, Kusu and Kudheiha will be done once the CBAs are registered with industrial court or an interim agreement between all the parties is agreed upon and duly signed,” said Muluvu.

Uasu officials yesterday dismissed the VCs stand, saying they are interested parties who should not comment on the release of the money to staff.

“We engage in negotiations with the Inter Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF) and so we only take seriously communication from this body,” said Constantine Wasonga, Uasu Secretary General.

Wasonga said VCs are also interested parties in the salary deal and should not comment on the money payable to staff as it has already been allocated for release.

Speaking yesterday, he said a court order issued on February 27 allowed interim implementation of the CBA and rubbished the push by VCs to deny workers money.

“Court instructed us to draft and register our consents to this arrangement in court, which as a union we agreed to but universities have dragged on this,” said Wasonga.

If the CBA is fully implemented, professors were expected to take an annual increment of about Sh8,547 and Sh9,753 for higher and lower limits, respectively.

Professors who earn a minimum salary of Sh170,681 per month would have their pay increased to Sh180,434 in the first year of implementation and Sh190,187 in the second year.

Their salaries would further go up to Sh199,940 and Sh209,693 for the third and fourth years, respectively.

Salaries of associate professors would be revised upwards by Sh11,766 for the lower band and Sh8,724 for upper limits.

Consent document

This means the associate professors who presently earn a minimum pay of Sh112,038 will take home Sh120,141 and Sh128,244 in first and second years of implementation of the CBA. Their pay would further rise to Sh136,347 and Sh144,450 in the third and fourth years.

Senior lecturers who presently earn a minimum of Sh112,038 would have their salaries increased to Sh120,141, Sh128,244, Sh136,347 and Sh144,450 for the next four years, respectively.

This translates to an annual increase of between Sh11,766 for lower bands and Sh8,103 for higher bands. Lecturers would get a pay rise of between Sh2,795 and Sh4,919.

Assistant lecturers/tutorial fellows will have their pay go up by between Sh3,561 and Sh5,392. Graduate assistants’ pay would also be increased annually by between Sh2,687 and Sh3,893.

The Standard has, however, established that at the centre of the stalemate is the wording of the consent document, as unions opposed the proposal by VCs to mark the matter as settled.

Wasonga said issues of pension and annual increment must still be left for negotiations and that they did not form part of the money allocated.