JSS teachers are relieved as MPs take action about their employment terms.
Thanks to the National Assembly’s intervention, 26,000 teachers who have been under contract since last year won’t have to wait until January 2025 to finalize their permanent and pensionable (PnP) terms.
The Committee on Education and Research has overturned the instructors Service Commission’s (TSC) prior proposal to convert the instructors’ status in January 2025, meaning that the teachers would now be hired on PnP terms starting on July 1st, 2024.
The tutors who have been on strike since the start of classes to pressure the TSC to hire them on PnP terms are relieved by the decision.
Julius Melly, the committee’s chair, informed the Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) that Sh8.3 billion has been set up for the teachers’ PnP conditions of employment and that the TSC will hire the instructors in July 2024 rather than January of the next year.
TSC is now threatening to fire JSS instructors.In submissions to the Budget and Appropriations Commission (BAC) on the Ministry of Education’s budget for the fiscal year 2024–2025,
Mr. Melly stated, “Starting the next financial year, the Teachers Service Commission should streamline the recruitment process to ensure that resources assigned to this function are fully utilised.”
“In addition, instead of January 2025 as suggested, the commission should convert the 26,000 interns to permanent employment starting in July 2024.”
In many domains, the teachers’ strike has halted instruction. 7,357 people who were listed as missing and were therefore presumed to have been taking part in the strike received “show cause” letters from the TSC last week.
Since 2019, the TSC has been hiring teachers under the contentious “internship” program, which pays Sh20,000 to teachers in secondary schools and Sh15,000 to those stationed in basic schools.
Tutors in JSS will now, however, begin with a basic pay of Sh36,621 and receive a home allowance ranging from Sh9,600 to Sh16,500, contingent upon where their work station is located. Together with the benefits of the teachers’ health insurance plan, the teachers will also be eligible for leave and commuting allowances.
In order to determine the ideal teacher count needed to direct future resource allocation for teacher recruitment and deployment, the Education Committee asked the TSC to undertake and assess the staff norms requirements for all institutions of basic learning for primary, junior, and senior school within six months.
In his appearance before the BAC, which was presided over by Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro, Mr. Melly stated that in order to hire 20,000 more intern teachers for the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 2024, an additional Sh4.68 billion will be needed.
For teacher promotions, the Tinderet MP TSC is requesting an additional Sh1 billion, and for the implementation of the second phase of the collective bargaining agreement for 2021–2025, Sh13 billion.
“Retooling of Junior Secondary School teachers on Competency Based Curriculum and the Collective Bargaining Agreement needs Sh1.3 billion,” stated Mr. Melly.
“That in order to have a reliable and accurate pool of student data to support decision-making in the sector, the State Department for Basic Education should lead and expedite the process of establishing the Kenya Education Management Information System (KEMIS), as envisaged in the Medium-Term Plan IV,” Mr. Melly stated.
This will be accomplished by combining NEMIS with the tertiary education subsector’s current information systems and utilizing more data that will be obtained from the next national schools census.
According to Mr. Melly, the TSC has been given Sh4.7 billion to hire 20,000 teachers for the JSS.
“The terms of service conversion for intern teachers will serve as a catalyst for improving their morale and a guarantee from the government that all upcoming intern teachers will be converted to permanent employment upon completion of their internship,” stated Mr. Melly.
According to Mr. Melly, the commission has been given Sh1 billion to promote instructors who had been inert for an extended length of time in one job group.
“Whereas Sh1 billion was allocated in the current fiscal year, the commission needs Sh2 billion to carry out these promotions. The proposed allocation in 2024–2025 will support the successful completion of these exercises, which will benefit all teachers who have been stagnant in various job groups for nearly 17 years,” Mr. Melly stated.
“But in order to prevent future stagnation and backlog, the commission needs more funding to support teachers on a constant basis.”
He stated that the TSC’s preliminary research suggests junior secondary school teachers are capable of teaching four subject areas, but the commission lacks a clear staffing structure for JSS.
JSS teachers are relieved as MPs take action about their employment terms.
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