“This Can’t Even Buy Cooking Oil!” – Outrage As Teachers Ridicule Meagre Sh36 Salary Increment

Teachers Outraged Over Ksh36 Pay Rise, Term It Insulting And Useless To Teachers.

Teachers across the country have expressed outrage after their July payslips revealed meagre salary increments, despite the recent signing of the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which had promised better pay and improved working conditions.

 

Educators are sharing payslips that show increases as low as Sh36 for some senior teachers, raising concerns about the sincerity of the teachers’ unions and the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).

 

Teachers are not happy despite the TSC paying the July salaries with salary increment inline with Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) 2025 – 2029 deal signed with teachers unions.

 

By close of business yesterday almost all banks and a few Saccos had effected the July salaries into teachers accounts.

 

 

Majority of teachers are frustrated and bitter after receiving a trivial increment in their July payslips which TSC has made them available online.

 

 

Many teachers were hopeful for an increment that would make a difference. Sadly many received an increment that doesn’t cross sh. 1,000/- a clear ground for frustration and turmoil.

 

For example a teacher in job group C1 and in bar got an increment of sh 996 in the net salary.

 

C1 – KSh 996

C2 – KSh 600

C3 – KSh 289

C4 – KSh 143

C5 – KSh 72

D1 – KSh 36

 

 

As the meagre increment was introduced, taxes ate up part of it leaving an insignificant net increment.

 

 

Now the heat of frustrations is being directed to union officials. Teachers blame the officials for signing a raw deal only to secure more union deductions and not tangible benefits for teachers.

 

Kuppet, Knut and Kusnet appended their signature into the deal on 18th July to usher in new salary changes in July payroll.

 

Teachers see these unions as avenues to eat their peanuts earnings instead of getting meaningful gains.

 

The unions did not strike deal to change allowances like commuter which has stagnated for years.

 

 

The Commission did not revise the allowances paid to teachers to cushion them from effects of inflation.

 

 

The Commission only introduced and increased the rates for payment of Baggage Allowance.

 

A Baggage Allowance is an allowance given to public servants on transfers to ferry their household goods from one station to another.

 

Example. Teachers current station is in Nairobi then he gets transferred to Busia county. The teacher is required to write a letter requesting for baggage allowance.

 

The ministry of transport will compute the total kilometers from Nairobi to Busia then you are paid the allowance

 

 

However all other existing allowances will remain unchanged i.e medical, house, commuter, hardship.

 

 

The Commission thanked President William Ruto for supporting the CBA announcing a raft of goodies to be unveiled in the 2025/2026 Financial Year. These include;

 

a) Recruitment of additional teachers at a cost of Sh2.4 Billion. Already, the Kenya Kwanza Government has recruited a total of 76,000 teachers in a span of just two and half years;

 

b) Promotion of teachers across all cadres at a cost of Sh1 Billion, and;

 

c) Re-tooling of Senior School teachers at a cost of Sh950 Million.

 

The first phase of the new CBA will be effective from 1st July, 2025 at a cost of 8.4 billion in salaries and allowances, with more than Sh1.2 billion being employer’s contribution to the teacher’s Pension Scheme and other statutory deductions.

 

In order to address the concerns raised by teachers through their unions, and after elaborate negotiations, the Commission awarded a salary increment of up to 29.5% for the various cadres of staff.

 

BASIC SALARY CBA 2025 – 2029

 

Grade TSC Scale Basic Pay

Minimum Basic Pay

Maximum

B5 5 28,620 37,100

C1 6 35,336 47,261

C2 7 41,420 57,230

C3 8 49,781 66,233

C4 9 58,585 77,120

C5 10 69,745 96,130

D1 11 80,984 99,272

D2 12 95,271 116,012

D3 13 109,224 133,347

D4 14 121,789 150,675

D5 15 135,321 167,415

COMMUTER ALLOWANCE

 

Grade Commuter Allowance p.m

B5 4,000

C1 4,000

C2 5,000

C3 6,000

C4 8,000

C5 8,000

D1 12,000

D2 12,000

D3 14,000

D4 14,000

D5 16,000

DISABILITY GUIDE ALLOWANCE

 

Grade Disability Guide Allowance p.m

B5 20,000

C1 20,000

C2 20,000

C3 20,000

C4 20,000

C5 20,000

D1 20,000

D2 20,000

D3 20,000

D4 20,000

D5 20,000

LEAVE ALLOWANCE (paid once a year in Jnauary)

 

Grade Annual Leave Allowance

B5 4,000

C1 4,000

C2 6,000

C3 6,000

C4 6,000

cs 6,000

D1 10,000

D2 10,000

D3 10,000

D4 10,000

D5 10,000

HOUSE ALLOWANCE

 

Grade TSC Scale Hse1 Nairobi Hse2 -Major Municipalities- Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Nyeri, Eldoret, Thika, Kisii and Kitale Hse3 -Other former Minor Municipalities Hse4 – alI other areas

BS 5 6,750 4,500 3,850 3,200

C1 6 10,000 7,500 5,800 4,200

C2 7 16,500 12,800 9,600 7,500

C3 8 28,000 22,000 16,500 13,000

C4 9 28,000 22,000 16,500 13,000

C5 10 35,000 25,500 18,000 15,400

D1 11 45,000 28,000 21,000 16,800

D2 12 45,000 28,000 21,000 16,800

D3 13 45,000 28,000 21,000 16,800

D4 14 45,000 28,000 21,000 16,800

D5 15 50,000 35,000 25,000 20,000

HARDSHIP ALLOWANCE

 

Grade Hardship Allowance

B5 6,600

C1 8,200

C2 10,900

C3 12,300

C4 14,650

C5 17,100

D1 27,300

D2 27,300

D3 31,500

D4 31,500

D5 38,100

BAGGAGE ALLOWANCE

 

Grade Rates in Kshs. per kilometer

B5 43

C1 43

C2 55

C3 55

C4 55

C5 55

D1 68

D2 68

D3 68

D4 68

D5 80

Teachers Outraged Over Ksh36 Pay Rise, Term It Insulting And Useless To Teachers.