For over three weeks, learning in most of the 35 public universities across the country came to a standstill as lecturers went on strike, taking to the streets to demand higher wages.
The strike, organized by the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU), was called off on November 23rd. The lecturers signed a return-to-work agreement with the Inter-Public Universities Council Consultative Forum (IPUCCF).
As part of the agreement, the government committed to fully implementing the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), valued at Sh. 9.7 billion.
The government promised to implement the CBA fully in the 2024/2025 academic year, with the National Treasury already allocating the funds under Supplementary Estimates II.
The implementation will be done in three phases. The first phase, costing Sh. 4.3 billion, will be paid over nine months up to June 2025. The second and third phases will cost a total of Sh. 5.4 billion, with the government committing to pay Sh. 2.7 billion for each phase.
”UASU agrees to take Ksh4.3 billion immediately but the government must agree to pay the balance. In 2025/26 we will be paid half of Ksh5.4 billion and in 2026/27 the remaining half. We must agree on how to negotiate other items on the Return-to-Work Formula,” said UASU SG Constantine Wasonga.
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Following the resumption of the disrupted academic calendar, UASU Secretary-General Wasonga outlined gave the way forward for university lecturers to recover the lost time.
“We will extend teaching house during the daily schedule and over weekeneds to recover time lost during the industrial strike,” Wasonga noted.
This agreement brings an end to the three-week standoff that left lecture halls deserted.
“Students are waiting to graduate and parents have paid fees. It’s time for parties to compromise for the sake of our education system,” Tinderet MP Julius Melly stressed.
