TSC Ordered to Deduct September 2026 Agency Fees From JSS Teachers to KUPPET

TSC Ordered to Deduct September 2026 Agency Fees From JSS Teachers to KUPPET.

The Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC) in Nairobi has directed the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to deduct and remit September 2026 agency fees from Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers to the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET).

The order is interim, and the underlying dispute between KUPPET and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) over who represents JSS teachers is still before the court.

What the Court Ordered

Justice Monica Mbaru issued the directive on September 17, 2026, in Petition No. ELRC/PET/17/2018, a case involving KNUT, KUPPET, TSC and another interested party. The matter came before the court under a certificate of urgency.

The order states, in part, that TSC — cited as the first interested party — is directed to “deduct and remit agency fees for September 2026… due to the Respondent (KUPPET) against all JSS Teachers pursuant to the consent order herein between the Petitioner (KNUT) and the Respondent.”

Key details of the order:

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Because this is an interim order tied specifically to a consent arrangement between KNUT and KUPPET, it does not amount to a final ruling on which union permanently represents JSS teachers, and it does not automatically convert non-member JSS teachers into KUPPET members. The wider representation dispute remains unresolved and returns to court on October 5.

Why KNUT and KUPPET Are Fighting Over JSS Teachers

Junior Secondary School — Grades 7, 8 and 9 — sits at the centre of a jurisdictional dispute that has run since JSS was rolled out under the Competency-Based Education (CBE) system. Two separate disagreements are playing out at once:

1. Which union collects agency fees from JSS teachers. JSS teachers are currently housed within “comprehensive schools” (institutions combining ECDE, primary and JSS under one head), which falls under KNUT’s traditional primary-school jurisdiction. But JSS teachers were hired as trained secondary-level educators, which is KUPPET’s traditional territory.

When TSC began deducting agency fees from thousands of non-member JSS teachers and remitting them to KUPPET — reportedly from around February 2025 — KNUT contested the arrangement, arguing JSS falls within its jurisdiction since the teachers work in primary-domiciled comprehensive schools.

With tens of thousands of JSS teachers involved, the fees at stake run into tens of millions of shillings a month, giving both unions a strong financial incentive to claim the cohort.

2. Whether JSS should be autonomous. Separately from the fee dispute, KUPPET has pushed Parliament to grant JSS its own administrative structure — a distinct head, budget and management — separate from comprehensive schools.

KNUT has opposed this, arguing JSS should remain integrated with primary schools under one institutional head, partly on the basis that Grade 7–9 learners are still young and benefit from continuity with the primary environment.

Groups such as the Kenya Junior School Teachers’ Association (KEJUSTA) have also pressed KUPPET to take a firmer position on autonomy, warning that JSS teachers’ professional identity is being squeezed between the two larger unions’ institutional interests.

These two fights are related but distinct. The September court order addresses only the agency-fee question for that one month; the autonomy question is being argued separately, including before Parliament’s Education Committee.

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Agency Fees vs Union Dues: What’s the Difference?

Confusion over this distinction is a major source of the current dispute, so it’s worth being precise.

Section 49 of the Labour Relations Act allows a trade union to apply to have an agency fee deducted from employees who are not union members but who benefit from the terms of a collective bargaining agreement the union negotiated — such as a salary increase, allowance, or improved condition of service.

The reasoning is that non-members should not get a “free ride” on gains a union spent resources negotiating. Paying an agency fee does not make someone a union member; it does not entitle them to vote in union elections, hold union office, or access member-only benefits.

This is a recurring flashpoint across TSC’s workforce, not just at JSS level. Special-needs teachers raised a similar complaint over KUSNET agency-fee deductions, which the National Assembly’s Public Petitions Committee reviewed and ultimately allowed to stand, finding the deductions lawful under Section 49 even where some affected teachers disputed the arrangement.

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What This Means for JSS Teachers Right Now

If you are a JSS teacher who is not a registered KUPPET member, and this order applies to your category, you can expect a September 2026 agency-fee deduction on your payslip, remitted to KUPPET. A few practical points:

• It is not permanent policy. The order covers September 2026 specifically, pending the October 5 hearing. What happens for subsequent months depends on the court’s further directions and the outcome of the wider representation case.
• It does not make you a KUPPET member. You retain the right to join, or decline to join, any registered union of your choice.
• You can check and manage deductions via T-Pay. TSC’s digital payslip and deductions platform allows teachers to view third-party and union-related deductions and, in principle, manage remittance preferences. TSC has previously stated the system lets teachers approve or halt deductions from their end, though several teacher groups — including special-needs educators — have disputed how easy this is to exercise in practice for agency fees specifically, since Section 49 deductions are not typically something an individual teacher can unilaterally cancel while still benefiting from the relevant CBA.
• Disputed transfers should be raised formally. If you believe you were moved from one union to another, or subjected to a deduction, without your consent, raise it in writing with your TSC county office and your union branch, and request the documentation used to authorise the change.

The Consent Membership Complaint From KNUT’s Nyamira Branch

Adding to the tension, KNUT’s Nyamira branch has separately alleged that some of its members were moved to KUPPET, or had agency-fee deductions applied, without their consent.

The branch has demanded that TSC reverse the affected records and produce the documentation used to justify the changes. National KNUT officials have echoed similar concerns, accusing TSC of facilitating a shift of members from KNUT to KUPPET without proper authorisation — an allegation TSC has not publicly detailed a response to as of this writing. This complaint is separate from, but closely tied to, the broader agency-fee case now before Justice Mbaru.

What Happens Next

The case returns to the Employment and Labour Relations Court on October 5, 2026. On that date:

1. TSC must report on its compliance with the September interim order.
2. The court is expected to hear further arguments on the underlying representation dispute between KNUT and KUPPET.
3. Any ruling on the wider question — which union has jurisdiction over JSS teachers, and whether the current consent arrangement should continue, be modified, or be replaced — will likely shape how agency fees and representation are handled for JSS teachers going forward.

Until then, the September deduction stands as ordered, and JSS teachers should expect to see it reflected on their payslips.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this court order make all JSS teachers KUPPET members?
No. It directs a one-month agency-fee deduction and remittance. Agency fees under Section 49 of the Labour Relations Act do not create union membership.

Which JSS teachers are affected?
The order applies to JSS teachers covered by the consent arrangement between KNUT and KUPPET — in practice, JSS teachers who are not registered members of either union but benefit from a KUPPET-negotiated CBA. Registered KNUT or KUPPET members continue paying ordinary union dues to their own union, not agency fees.

Can a teacher refuse to pay the agency fee?
Generally, no, if the teacher is not a union member but benefits from the relevant collective bargaining agreement — Section 49 makes the fee a legal obligation in that scenario, not an optional deduction, as prior parliamentary and court findings on similar disputes (such as the KUSNET case) have affirmed.

What is the difference between a comprehensive school and an autonomous JSS?
A comprehensive school combines ECDE, primary and JSS grades under one TSC-appointed head. An autonomous JSS, as KUPPET has proposed, would have its own head, administration and resources separate from the primary section. This question is being debated separately from the agency-fee case, including before Parliament.

Where can I verify my own deductions?
Log into TSC’s T-Pay platform to review union dues, agency fees and other third-party deductions applied to your payslip.

TSC Ordered to Deduct September 2026 Agency Fees From JSS Teachers to KUPPET.

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