TUC-K General Secretary Wilson Sossion demanded that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) should conclude and ensure the immediate signing of the CBA with the Kenya National Union of Teachers and other stakeholders/FILE
NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 22 – The Trade Unions Congress of Kenya (TUC-K) has issued a two months strike notice should all pending Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) in the public sector not be signed by the government before budget reading for the 2016/2017 financial year.
In a statement, TUC-K General Secretary Wilson Sossion demanded that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) should conclude and ensure the immediate signing of the CBA with the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and other stakeholders.
“If the demand for conclusion and signing of the CBAs as listed herein above is not concluded in good time to be factored in the budget for 2016/2017 financial year, this demand do serve as notice that the Trade Unions Congress of Kenya-TUC-K will commence the process of withdrawing labour in all sectors covered by employees in the public sector by 1st July, 2016,” he said.
He also called on the Public University Councils to deal with all pending CBAs as negotiated by the Universities Academic Staff Union and the Kenya Universities Staff Union.
“We make this demand, consciously lawfully and graciously, aware of the fact that it behoves upon us as union leaders to negotiate, sign and make any decision, in pursuit of our members’ rights to just pay for work of equal value,” he stated.
Sossion further pointed out that the Public Service Commission, County Governments and all public employers should immediately ensure that all pending CBAs with the Union of Kenya Civil Servants, Dock Workers Union and all other unions are signed without further delay.
“Kenya Public Service workers are some of the most hardworking, resilient and ingenious lot in this country. They wake up early to beat the ever increasing traffic jam, spend the long hours in office and bear the blunt of shrinking economic fortunes but harvest empty pay slips at the end of the month,” he said.
He emphasised that workers in the public sector invariably do not benefit from public pronouncements on minimum wage increases but on signed between employers and employees through their unions.
“This gentleman or lady has children not in school over fees balances, has over borrowed from Saccos, neighbours and has not attended church in the last two months for inward shame he stated.”
“The Kenyan Government has consistently failed for the last three years to address the plight of this category of workers. During the previous regimes, celebrations to mark Labour Days were waited upon with hope and high expectations from workers especially in the private sector who ironically benefit from pronouncements on minimum wage increases,” he said.
He also called on the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to release its findings on the job evaluation process it undertook without any further delay.
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