Teachers deployed to special schools and units by the TSC are protesting delayed payment of their special allowances, almost a year after their deployment.
The teachers, who were part of the 6000-teacher recruitment drive under the TSC-KUSNET deal, say they have not received the KSh10,000 special allowance they were promised.
Teachers Feel Abandoned Despite Tough Jobs
The affected teachers revealed that their work goes beyond classrooms, often requiring them to visit hospitals and students’ homes to provide support.
One teacher said:
“We handle students with diverse disabilities and go the extra mile to assist them, yet we have not received the allowances we were promised.”
Fed up, many are threatening to ask for transfers back to regular schools if their demands are not met.
KUSNET Should Intervene
The teachers are now asking KUSNET leadership to intervene and ensure TSC honours its promise.
In 2017, after the Career Progression Guidelines were signed, many special education teachers felt left out of promotions and began asking for transfers to mainstream schools. This depleted the special education workforce and TSC and KUSNET had to negotiate a new deal to increase staffing.
As per the agreement:
- 1,750 teachers were to be deployed in September 2024.
- 1,200 teachers were to report in January 2025.
- The final 1,200 teachers were to report in June 2025.
The delayed payment is stalling the whole initiative.
Addressing the Special Education Crisis
With the CBC rolling out, unresolved teacher welfare issues could hinder special needs education.
To ensure smooth transition and quality service delivery, stakeholders are urging:
- TSC to release pending allowances now.
- KUSNET to push for timely payment and policy enforcement.
- The Ministry of Education to review special needs teacher incentives to retain experts.Or else Kenya will dump more teachers in special needs.