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The action taken by KNUT to prevent the recruitment of teachers on contract not only ensured that education is protected against the shocks of economy which could lead to cuts directed at the education sector but also set the trend for continued recruitment of qualified teachers in Kenya. It also ensured that teachers are kept within a framework in which they can negotiate for better working conditions. It also demonstrated that the teacher unions can exist for causes beyond bread and butter. One Kenyan columnist commented that KNUT, which many had associated with striking for increased pay only, “had demonstrated that they could think of their neighbours as well”.

“The teaching force in Kenya was 260,000 before the introduction of Free Basic Education in 2003. Ironically in 2011 it had reduced to less than 220,000”, Mr Okuta Osiany, the Secretary General of KNUT, said in his report to the National Executive Council while calling for a decision to rescue the teaching fraternity from what he referred to as a ‘reckless neglect’.

This was on the 6th of September 2011 and the issue at hand was the shortage of teachers. The government of Kenya had tried to deal with the problem by advertising for the recruitment of 12,600 trained teachers on contract but the KNUT intervened on the basis that it was contravening the national constitution which does not allow for fully trained and professional teachers to be employed under discriminatory terms. KNUT wanted these teachers employed under permanent and pensionable terms and also reminded the government of its obligation to “Vision 2030 social strategy to invest in the people of Kenya” to among other things recruit 28,000 more teachers and ensure that schools have adequate teachers. KNUT also highlighted that Kenya had a shortage of over 60,000 and yet in the 2011/2012 National budget read in June, no provision was made for recruiting any teacher.

The issue came up in 2009 when KNUT filed a court case to challenge the recruitment of teachers on contract and the court ruled in their favour. The application challenging the ruling was also dismissed. This sparked off a series of consultation meetings with various government departments including the Ministry of finance. Significantly on the 9th of July 2010, the union met the Deputy Prime Minister who is also the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Education. In this meeting the Union agreed to withdraw the court case on condition that the teachers recruited on contract would gradually be absorbed in the TSC and no others recruited on contract terms. The Finance Minister and the Minister of Education did not live up to their promises.

As a result, on 6th-8th December, 2010, the Annual Delegates Conference of KNUT made resolved as:

“ Pertaining to the issue of employment of teachers on contract: The union demands that these teachers be absorbed by the Commission on permanent and pensionable terms; as it is very clear that employment of teachers under contractual terms, was strictly a stop gap measure. The union wants to make it very clear that it will not allow the TSC to continue keeping these fully qualified and professional teachers, in employment under such discriminatory terms of employment”.

KNUT then armed itself with the newly promulgated constitution of the Republic of Kenya Articles 27 which bars the state from discriminating directly or indirectly any person on any ground; Article 41, which stipulates that a worker has a right to fair remuneration and to reasonable working conditions, and protects all citizens against unfair administrative action. In addition KNUT evoked the Employment Act Section 5 which requires employers to pay equal remuneration for work of equal value and the Teachers Service Act which makes employment of teachers on contract illegal. The union then held further meetings and correspondence with the Ministry of Education, the ministry of Finance, the Teachers Service Commission, and the Minister of labour. A memorandum was also sent to Parliament with no positive results. Consequently KNUT declared a trade dispute between the KNUT and the TSC and gave the 7 day notice which expired on the 5th of September 2011. The following day the teachers of Kenya went on strike and their demand was to have 18,000 teachers on contract absorbed and a further 10,000 employed.

On the 11th of September 2011 the strike was called off after the employer had agreed to employ the 18,060 contract teachers on permanent and pensionable terms beginning 1st October 2011 and to hire another 5,000 teachers. This marked the end of what the KNUT Secretary General termed ‘the most successful strike in the history of Kenya’.

Indeed the issue of enough teachers has been taken seriously. Education Minister Mutula Kilonzo recently asked for Sh15.4 billion in the 2012/2013 budget to enable the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) deal with the teacher shortage in public secondary and primary schools. This would include recruiting 40,000 more teachers. Mr Kilonzo also proposed that a further 20,000 teachers be employed annually over the next three to five years. The proposal could see an additional 100,000 teachers recruited.