TSC intern teachers employment to junior secondary schools updates.
The approximately 60,000 teachers who worked as Teachers Service Commission interns have the right to claim payment from their employers for the full time they were employed.
This came to light yesterday, when the commission was found to have violated their right to fair labor practices by granting them internship job although they were qualified and held teaching licenses, according to the job and Labour Relations Court (ELRC).
But with the second term of courses starting in just two weeks, the ruling also raises questions about the viability of junior secondary education. Teachers at the junior secondary school have been largely in favor of the competency-based curriculum’s introduction.
According to Justice Byrum Ongaya’s ruling, the commission is only able to employ qualified candidates who have been registered; as a result, it is not allowed to work with or employ interns or student teachers.
“If the respondents had demonstrated statutory regulatory or policy arrangements,” the first respondent (TSC) would have the right to hire interns. Justice Ongaya states that the first respondent should ideally hire registered instructors on nondiscriminatory terms in order to meet the best staffing needs in public institutions.
The effort was started not just as a crash program to provide teachers for junior secondary schools, but also to alleviate the teacher shortage that was affecting schools.
To the plethora of problems that have beset the internship program, the decision adds a great deal of opposition to the program’s expansion.
The internship program was initially intended to run for a year, following which the interns would be hired on a permanent basis and receive pension benefits.
But President William Ruto said in December that the instructors would have to serve an extra year before they could be considered for permanent and pensionable employment.
TSC contracted with the interns to teach two subjects while the case was pending in court. But science and arithmetic were addressed in the classroom along with everything else.
The fact that some of their colleagues had been engaged on long-term, pensionable contracts while they had been kept on as college and university teachers placed in schools to obtain teaching experience also infuriated the employed.
Despite the instructors receiving a “intern stipend,” there were claims that TSC deducted all taxes and government payments, including the controversial housing charge.
On behalf of the interns, the Forum for Good Governance and Human Rights filed the complaint. It implied that those in employment were supposed to manage every situation on their own and were not subject to oversight.
Carelessly handling the children’s life and rights, the second respondent is a test subject to check if the CBC can run smoothly. The court heard that I declare this to be a concerning circumstance.
One of the affected teachers filed an affidavit in support of the complaint. Oroso Oganga claims that he was moved to the Eking Narok Primary School in Kajiado County.
He obtained a Bachelor of Education (Arts) degree, according to his transcript. He claimed that only history and Christian religious education were permitted under the terms of his contract with TSC.
But when he reported to the school on February 7, 2023, he did add that he ultimately ended up teaching computer science, integrated science, social studies, CRE, health education, and life skills.
He asserted that he was also in charge of the administration and management of the class.
Despite working constantly, Oroso claimed to have gotten a Sh20,000 payout to take home.
The court’s ruling was welcomed by the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), which described it as a significant victory for student teachers on Wednesday. The choice makes it possible for the interns to be recruited on as full-time staff members in the future.
The KNUT secretary-general, Collins Oyuu, expressed reservations about the internship program, stating that it was unfair to classify instructors with complete certification as trainees.
“The intern issue has been a sore spot, but we sincerely support the temporary solution. Particularly for those who have finished a full year of internships, it seems sense that these teachers become permanent workers with pensions, Mr. Oyuu said.
He has asked TSC to lobby Parliament on their behalf in order to obtain funding for the intern teachers’ permanent and pensionable employment.
“If the funds are not available to employ the teachers on a permanent and pensionable basis, they can pay in arrears when the funds are available,” said Oyuu.
President William Ruto’s administration has 56,000 intern teachers working for it.
Additionally, TSC CEO and Secretary General Nancy Macharia revealed in February that an additional 20,000 interns would be hired in July.
The second respondent is negligently handling the children’s lives and rights while serving as a test subject.
A judge has ruled that junior high schools are not permitted to employ intern teachers.
TSC intern teachers employment to junior secondary schools updates.
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