Why the 50-60% Increment in Teachers Pay is Good for Us

Let’s face it. The teaching profession has become just as lucrative and endearing as politics. The 50 - 60% pay increment in the teachers’ salaries awarded to them by the Labor Court and upheld by the Court of Appeal, gave a much needed lifeline to the teaching profession and the education sector.

Although there is a pending appeal at the Court of Appeal, teachers are hopeful that the decision to award them the much awaited increment will also be upheld in the highest court on the land. Should this happen, and we are praying that it does, we hope that the squabbles in the education sector will come to an end and teachers would go back to the classrooms.

Teaching, I have been repeatedly told, is a calling like serving in the disciplined forces, the medical sectors or becoming a man or woman of the cloth. You do not just wake up one day, harassed by unending bills, in dire need of money, and say, let me be a teacher and make some money. Should I get a better thing, I’ll move on. Teaching, in and of itself is the “better thing”, a noble profession, and a preserve of those who have been called to serve man and God. (Ever wondered why we have a lot of problems with the “callings” or noble professions?)

There has been a lot of debate on whether teachers deserve a better pay. The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) thinks teachers are paid well enough already. Parliament and politicians are divided about it. But I doubt that national interest is the cause of that division. Some people have argued that the question is inconsequential as there already exists a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between teachers unions and the government which should be honored.

One of the major concerns of those opposed to a teachers’ pay rise is that it will increase our recurrent expenditure which is already bloated. They also argue that there isn’t any money set aside to honor this obligation. It has also been pointed out, in order to effect this increase, there is a likelihood of increased taxation and/or public debt. Further, and you should really think about this, is that this increase may inspire other civil servants (and employees generally everywhere) to demand a pay increment!

You may have probably noticed that most of the people opposed to the teachers’ pay increase are drawing millions of shillings in salaries and allowances every year, millions that teachers can only hope to get in highly priced long term loans.

The ordinary Kenyan, who goes about his duties and faithfully pays his taxes, is not complaining. If anything, they are happy for teachers. You see, their fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, cousins, husbands, wives, daughters, sons, friends and neighbors are teachers. Here is a better one: they are teachers themselves!

We should all be happy for teachers. They work tirelessly every day to give this nation capable men and women to build it. We owe our own little successes to teachers spread across this land. They taught us to always work hard, to seek more knowledge, be disciplined and deal fairly with all persons.

Employees everywhere – in the public service and private sector - should be happy for rather selfish reasons: a window into better pay has been opened. Now, you can turn to the courts for justice if you feel that employers want to keep all the gains you have helped them achieve!

Ultimately, this whole debate about how much teachers and other employees should earn boils down to class differences. The well-to-do want to maintain the status quo. If these people complaining are genuine about this country, let them demand a cut in their own excesses. We cannot progress as a nation as long  as the wedge between the rich and the poor, the well paid and those of us on subsistence wages, stretches from the nondescript Atapara to Mpeketoni. Surely, there should be a research that says that poorly paid folks don’t really perform; they just do what they can to get by.