UASU Secretary General Constantine Wesonga. /EDUMIN
The Universities Academic Staff Union has issued a seven-day strike notice over what it terms as the government’s failure to honour Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) for 2021–2025 and 2025–2029.
The strike is set to begin on September 17 and will continue until the government meets and implements the union’s demands.
“We won’t say more. Honour the CBA – our ultimatum – in seven days,” UASU Secretary General Constantine Wesonga said.
According to Uasu, the government has failed to implement key provisions, including Sh2.73 billion in arrears from Phase Two of the 2021–2025 CBA, which was due in the 2025-26 financial year.
The union also cited Sh8.8 billion owed from the 2017–21 CBA, which was upheld by court rulings but remains unpaid.
They accused the government of ignoring court directives that ordered the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), the Ministry of Education, and the National Treasury to allocate funds for the CBAs.
UASU further demanded the immediate negotiation, conclusion, and registration of the 2025–29 CBA in line with a Recognition Agreement signed in 2019.
“Our members shall therefore withdraw their labour and shall not resume duty until all these demands are met,” Wesonga warned.
If the strike goes ahead, learning in all 41 public universities and constituent colleges is expected to grind to a halt, disrupting both students and lecturers.
It will come just a week after Uasu called off a three-week lecturers’ strike at Moi University following lengthy negotiations with the university council.
The lecturers had presented 25 demands, among them was the immediate withdrawal of redundancy letters that had been issued to about 200 lecturers.
Learning had been completely paralysed during the strike.
Student leaders welcomed the return to class and urged the Ministry of Education to dialogue with Uasu to prevent further strikes.
"Our lecturers have genuine demands which must be addressed. They cannot teach without being paid their dues,” said one of the student leaders.
