Kenyan universities could face fresh disruption when institutions reopen in September, as lecturers’ unions accuse the government of failing to honour successive Collective Bargaining Agreements and warn of a looming standoff over retirement policy.
The Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya Universities Staff Union (KUSU) issued the warning during a press briefing at UASU headquarters in Nairobi, demanding immediate and full payment of outstanding arrears from the 2017–2021 and 2021–2025 CBAs.
UASU Secretary General Dr. Constantine Wasonga and KUSU counterpart Dr. Charles Mukhwaya rejected any proposal for staggered payments, arguing that years of delay have already strained university staff financially without any accompanying interest on the outstanding sums.
Dr. Mukhwaya urged the Ministry of Education to expedite settlement of the pending obligations, noting that talks on the 2021–2025 CBA remain unresolved even as a fresh 2025–2029 agreement looms.
The unions also raised concern over stalled promotions, delayed gratuity payments and what they termed unilateral alterations to lecturers’ salaries through government human resource instruments issued without consultation.
Central to the dispute is a Public Service Commission circular that set retirement age at 70 for professors and associate professors, while lecturers and senior lecturers would retire at 65. UASU has firmly opposed the policy, with Dr. Wasonga challenging the Public Service Commission to produce evidence of any consultation with the union on the matter.
University of Nairobi UASU Chapter Secretary Prof. George Osanjo warned that the policy would hit the institution hardest given its ageing academic workforce, cautioning that up to 70 percent of staff could eventually be affected after the university had already lost close to 40 percent of its lecturers to retirement, resignation and other exits.
On staffing, Dr. Wasonga said Kenya currently has roughly 10,070 lecturers, including about 1,000 in management, serving more than one million university students, against an estimated requirement of over 35,000 lecturers. He also called on lecturers to boycott part-time teaching arrangements, accusing universities of over-relying on part-time staff instead of hiring more full-time academics.
The unions further questioned government funding priorities, arguing that clearing over Ksh100 billion in pending bills owed to universities should take precedence over new funding pledges.
Dr. Wasonga signalled that a strike he had previously said would only be considered in 2030 may now come sooner. “I’m seeing we’re being forced to have one in September,” he said, as pressure mounts on the government to resolve the disputes before universities reopen.
