Head Teachers Push for Pay Rise and Promotions to Job Group D2 and D3.
Over 15,000 primary school head teachers are campaigning for salary increases and career advancement to principal positions, arguing that their responsibilities have grown significantly.
The 25th annual Kenya Primary School Heads Association (Kepsha) conference concluded on Thursday with head teachers urging for an increase in capitation funding, aligning with recommendations from the Presidential Working Party on Education.
Kepsha members also demanded a change in the grading system to allow primary school head teachers to advance from job group D1 to D2 or D3.
Currently, D1 is the highest level they can reach, while D2, D3, and D4 correspond to principal, senior principal, and chief principal roles, respectively. Head teachers insisted on the government recognizing them as principals to facilitate their promotion pathway to job grade D5.
On Wednesday, Teachers Service Commission (TSC) CEO Nancy Macharia informed Kepsha members that such policy changes would require parliamentary endorsement.
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She advised Kepsha to work with the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) to bring the proposal forward in the upcoming Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Resolutions for Career Progression and Resource Allocation
During the conference, Kepsha’s national chairman, Johnson Nzioka, presented a resolution demanding the promotion of teachers and head teachers who have completed higher education qualifications.
The association also called for reforms in school resource allocation through a competency-based assessment portal in the Nemis/Kemis system rather than relying on birth certificates, which they noted often lead to inaccurate student counts due to missing certificates among many children.
Kepsha urged the government to hasten the recruitment of teachers for junior secondary schools, as well as appoint qualified accountants or bursars to help manage free education capitation funds.
Additionally, they advocated for expanding the school meals program to cover schools in arid, semi-arid, and informal settlement areas.
Commendations and Requests to the Government
The head teachers praised the government for earmarking funds to enhance Competence Based Curriculum (CBC) teacher training, promoting teachers for the 2024-2025 cycle, and broadcasting lessons to remote schools.
Nonetheless, they requested that the government expedite a review of career progression guidelines to support teachers’ advancement.
In related news, Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos addressed the government’s ongoing efforts to counter examination malpractice.
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Speaking from Kilifi, Migos noted that detectives are tracking individuals using online platforms to facilitate cheating and irregularities in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Examination.
Migos emphasized that the exams are being managed under a collaborative, multi-agency approach involving the Education, Interior, and ICT ministries.
Head Teachers Push for Pay Rise and Promotions to Job Group D2 and D3.
