Court blocks SRC attempt to reduce ECDE teachers’ Salary

Court blocks SRC attempt to reduce ECDE teachers’ Salary

Court blocks SRC attempt to reduce ECDE teachers’ Salary. The government’s attempt to reduce nursery school teachers’ salary by 50% has been blocked by the Court.

Almost 45,000 ECD teachers would have been directly impacted by the Salary and Remuneration Commission’s plan, which was rejected by the Employment and Labour Relations Court.

According to Justice Ann Mwaure’s ruling, the government must preserve current salaries pending the outcome of a petition submitted by Omboko Milemba, chair of the Kenya Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) union.

Once the Salary and Reward Committee (SRC) suggested a compensation review, Milemba filed a lawsuit against it.

A 50% salary cut is now in store for the 45,000 Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) personnel who are impacted by the circular.

In order to allow for the hearing and decision on this motion, Judge Mwaure declared, “An interim order is hereby issued suspending the implementation of the SRC circular of December 10, 2021.”

In this instance, Milemba claimed that the SRC circular meant that nursery school teachers would only receive half of their normal pay, which would put some of them in a lower pay range than domestic assistants who make at least Sh 13,000 per month. He declared that the legal minimum salary is at least Sh 13,572.

43,874 ECDE teachers are employed by the 47 county governments, claims the court. The majority (28955) of the positions (out of a total of 919) are on three-year contracts, while only 14 (out of a total of 919) are permanent and pensionable.

At least 15,000 is what an ECDE teacher makes each month.

The court was informed that the circular meant that they would not receive the monthly salary of Sh7,835 that those in senior positions and with more than 12 years of experience would receive. Instead, they would receive between Sh15,224 and Sh19,090.

All county governors received a circular from SRC on January 13 of this year. It was alleged that some counties were paying EDCE teachers more than they were compensated for.

We’ve learned that certain counties are paying ECDE teachers wages that are far higher than the pay scale recommended by SRC and announced on December 10, 2021… The circular said, in part, that hiring and promoting ECDE teachers would be done “subject to affordability, budgetary sustainability, and in accordance with the authorized job description for each post as reviewed.”

Milemba said in the court that nursery school teachers will suffer, adding that this is a disgrace to the men and women entrusted to raise children from their very first years of school.

He claims that neither the SRC nor the public involvement process ever consulted the stakeholders.

The imposition of this unilateral variation or reduction in their salaries is a huge demotivator and would have the unintended effect of deteriorating standards and quality of education at the early childhood education level in this country, according to the applicant, who asserts that performing teachers are motivated teachers.

Milemba, who serves as the MP for the Emuhaya seat, informed the court that the circular has already been implemented in some counties.