UASU rejects 3% salary offer, warns lecturers’ strike will continue
The Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) has rejected the government’s proposed three per cent salary increment, saying it is prepared to sustain its strike until the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement is fully implemented. Speaking in Eldoret on Friday, September 2, 2026, university lecturers faulted the government for delaying the implementation of the agreement and warned […]
The Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) has declined the government's proposed 3% salary increase, threatening to continue its strike until the 2025-2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement is fully put into effect. University lecturers criticized the government for delaying the agreement's implementation and cautioned the union's secretary general against ending the strike based on unfulfilled promises.
Negotiations were supposed to be wrapped up in 30 days, yet nearly a year later, they are still ongoing. The lecturers strongly rejected the notion that university staff salaries should be funded through student fees, emphasizing that public servants like lecturers should be paid from the government's funds. They also took issue with the 3% increase, asserting that it only applies to basic salaries and ignores annual increments.
Lecturers argued that annual salary hikes are essential to protect workers from inflation, which they said is far more severe than the proposed raise. They pointed out that taxes, the housing levy, and other statutory contributions would further diminish the actual benefit of the proposed 3% increment. Union officials also expressed concerns over unpaid amounts from earlier collective bargaining agreements, including a Ksh1.25 billion balance from the 2017 agreement.
They insisted that the ongoing industrial action would only end once an agreement is signed, implemented, and the first phase of the agreed payments is made. Lecturers urged the government to resolve the dispute within 24 hours, warning that they would return to class if a concrete solution is reached. They also cautioned the union leadership against accepting what they called "promissory notes," insisting that any agreement must be backed by actual implementation and payment.
The ongoing standoff now threatens continued learning in public universities, as UASU remains prepared for a prolonged strike until its demands under the 2025-2029 bargaining agreement are addressed.
Written by urgent.news from People Daily Kenya's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
