Knut says no to extending internship contracts
Knut says no to extending internship contracts
The Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) is pushing for intern teachers to be placed on permanent, pensionable terms and is against the extension of their contracts.
Despite hints that contracts would be extended, Knut Secretary General Collins Oyuu underlined the union’s desire that instructors be hired on a one-year contract.
During an Annual General Meeting, Oyuu emphasized the signed Memorandum of Understanding with the instructors Service Commission (TSC), which states that instructors are accepted as interns for a year, and asked teachers not to stage protests. Oyuu, however, made it clear that contract extensions would not be approved.
Oyuu noted that hiring teachers as interns has decreased young unemployment, but she also stressed the need of internships having a set duration, particularly for instructors working in junior secondary schools (JSS). He raised worry that fourteen untrained subjects were expected of certified teachers, who were assigned to manage subjects for which they lacked JSS training.
Citing the low monthly salary of Sh17,000, Oyuu demanded that intern instructors should be hired on a permanent and pensionable basis, even though their original goal was to alleviate shortages. He gave Knut his word that he would support contract teachers and push for their transfer to permanent, pensionable employment instead of using the streets as a protest tactic.
Speaking to more general issues, Oyuu denounced senior graduate instructors’ unfair treatment, pointing out differences in pay and benefits for people with comparable training and duties. He urged for respect to the norms of job evaluation and stressed the importance of equal compensation for equal labor.
Silas Obuhatsa, the chairman of the National Parents Association, also participated in the discussion and disclosed that intern instructors had threatened to quit if their contracts are extended in January. In order to prevent disturbances in January, Obuhatsa encouraged the government to work with TSC to hire these skilled teachers on permanent and pensionable terms.
