Kenya’s university lecturers, who are part of the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU), are threatening to stop working.
Their main demand is simple: they want their December salaries and any overdue payments they were promised.
According to the union, if the government doesn’t pay them everything they’re owed, they won’t return to their jobs.
Why Are the Lecturers Angry?
For the lecturers, the end of 2024 was disappointing.
They had been assured that their pay would increase under an agreement called the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
But those promises haven’t been kept.
Education officials, like Principal Secretary Beatrice Inyangala, had said that all salaries, including overdue amounts from October and November, would be paid by December.
However, that didn’t happen. Instead, university staff went home for the holidays without their money.
“Lecturers were guaranteed new salaries and arrears, but nothing was paid,” said Onesmus Maluki Mutio, UASU’s National Organizing Secretary.
A Final Warning to the Government
On January 1, UASU gave the government an ultimatum of 15 days to pay up.
If their demands aren’t met, the union says it will call for a strike that will stop teaching, grading, and exams in Kenya’s public universities.
The lecturers are also criticizing the Education Cabinet Secretary, Julius Migos Ogamba, saying he’s not doing his job well.
They believe he’s broken too many promises and want him to step down.
“You can’t keep making empty promises to lecturers and expect things to run smoothly. We need leaders who keep their word,” said Mutio.
A Pattern of Strikes
This isn’t the first time lecturers have stopped working.
Back in November 2024, they went on strike for similar reasons.
They had agreed to return to work in September after the government promised to resolve their pay issues, but the government didn’t follow through.
The lecturers are now firm: they will not teach again until they’ve been fully paid.
“We won’t return to work unless every shilling we’re owed is in our accounts,” said one Mutio.
What Happens If the Strike Happens?
If the strike goes ahead, public universities across Kenya will shut down.
This will disrupt classes, exams, and the studies of thousands of students.
It also highlights a bigger issue: lecturers in Kenya feel overworked, undervalued, and underpaid.
Will the Government Act in Time?
Now, the government has less than two weeks to resolve the issue.
Will they meet the union’s demands, or will Kenya face another major strike in its higher education sector?
Only time will tell.
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