TSC Updated Salary Structure following 7-10% Increment
Days after the government employees’ pay were evaluated, teachers started to voice their concerns about the gap between the top and lowest grade increments.
The lowest grade, B5, commonly known as P1 instructors, is expected to receive a higher raise than the highest position, D5 (Chief Principal), according to union representatives.
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) secretary general, Collins Oyuu, voiced discontent with the increased salary and said the union was examining the revised package before deciding the next course of action.
When asked for comment, Oyuu responded, “Our stand still remains that the lowest paid should be the greatest beneficiary.”
Similar to other leaders, Akello Misori of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Teachers (Kuppet) only indicated that a thorough statement would be released later.
If the Government’s proposal is put into effect, the lowest paid teacher in B5 will receive an increase from their current income of Sh21,756 to a minimum of Sh23,279 and from their current salary of Sh27,195 to a maximum of Sh29,915.
Grade Current Salary 7% Increase 10% Increase
New minimum salary
This translates to a minimal increase of approximately Sh1,523 for a 7% increase and Sh2,720 for a 10% increase.
Conversely, the highest grade of D5 could yield a minimum of Sh173,422.
The proposal indicates that teachers in the D5 grade, who currently earn a base salary of Sh131,380, will receive a 7 percent raise to a minimum of Sh140,577.
In the event of a 10 percent increase, a teacher whose current base salary is Sh157,657 will receive no more than Sh174,422.
This corresponds to an increase of approximately Sh9,197 for a minimal new basic pay scale of 7% and up to Sh15,766 for a maximum new basic pay scale of 10%.
“Under the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) scheme, the highest-paid teacher received the most benefits, but what we wanted was for the lowest-paid teachers to receive the most,” said an anonymous teacher’s union official.
B5 teachers are predominantly P1 teachers and have the lowest salaries, whereas C1 teachers are predominantly diploma teachers who are automatically promoted to the next grade after three years.
Graduates of an entry-level program are among those in grade C2, and they are promoted to grade C3 after three years of practice in this job group.
Interviews are required of C3 instructors in order to advance to the next grade.
C4 includes senior instructors and primary assistant principals, whereas D1 includes secondary assistant principals and newly appointed principals.
Also Read: Teachers and Civil Servants to Lose 3% of their Gross Salary this Month
Equity and Fairness
Depending on the type of school, D2 and D3 teachers include principals and assistant principals, while D4 and D5 teachers include principals and chief principals.
Likewise, teachers in Grades D1 through D5 are administrative teachers. D2 teachers can lead sub-county schools, while D3 and D4 teachers can lead County and extra-county schools.
Implementation of Pay Review
The evaluation is intended to ensure equity and justice in compensation and benefits within the public service while adhering to the principles of affordability and fiscal sustainability, according to Lyn Mengich, head of the SRC, who made this statement on Wednesday.
SRC contacted the National Treasury about funding in accordance with the constitutional principles of budgetary responsibility and affordability. The SRC was directed by the National Treasury to evaluate the compensation system while keeping the Sh27.7 billion budget allocation for the fiscal years 2023–24.
The teaching service will receive 44.2%, or Sh9.5 billion, of the total budget of Sh21.7 billion under the current proposal.
Tutors are granted relief because the teachers’ union agreed to a non-financial Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for the years 2021–2025, but it also promised its members that a review of basic pay would be done after TSC received clearance from SRC.
However, the unions have insisted that TSC reconsider their compensation in light of recent inflation rates.
With a 7% and 10% increase, respectively, the current basic salary of Sh118,242 for D4 would rise to a minimum of Sh126,519 and a maximum of Sh156,080.
TSC Updated Salary Structure following 7-10% Increment
From Sh104,644 to a minimum of Sh111,969 and from Sh125,573 to a maximum of Sh138,130, the grade D3 wage will increase by 10%.
Teachers in grade D2 who are currently paid Sh91,041 will receive a pay raise of 10% to a minimum of Sh97,414 and a maximum of Sh120,174.
The projected increases for D1 salaries were from Sh77,840 to Sh83,289 (a 7% increase) and from Sh93,408 to Sh102,749 (a 10% increase), while the projected increases for C5 salaries were from Sh62,272 to a minimum of Sh66,631 and from the current basic compensation of Sh77,840 to a maximum of Sh86,625 (a 10% increase).
Similar salary increases were anticipated for C4 teachers, who would go from their current Sh52,308 to a maximum of Sh55,970, and for C3 teachers, who would go from their current Sh43,154 to a minimum of Sh46,175 and by 10% from Sh53,943 to Sh59,337.
In contrast, C1 teachers’ salaries would rise from Sh27,195 to a minimum of Sh29,099 with a 7% increase and from Sh33,994 to a maximum of Sh37,393 with a 10% increase, while C2 teachers with a base salary of Sh34,955 would receive a minimum of Sh37,402 and from Sh43,694 to a maximum of Sh48,064.
Teachers’ unions have urged the government to consider the plight of workers, to avoid disruptive policies, and to conduct extensive consultations before implementing any measure that may affect workers’ salaries during the current period of severe economic difficulties.
As an illustration, Kuppet claimed last month that the situation had worsened due to widespread stagnation in the service, with over 62,000 instructors remaining in the same job groups for more than five years and others for ten years.
Kuppet also stated that the union’s National Governing Council (NGC) met with President William Ruto in May at State House, where Ruto assured the union of the government’s commitment to grant teachers a minimum 10% salary increase upon passage of the Finance Bill.
TSC Updated Salary Structure following 7-10% Increment
