Why Are Kenyan Teachers Angry About the 2025 Pay Rise?
A wave of disappointment has swept across Kenya’s teaching workforce following the implementation of the 2025 salary review. Teachers nationwide have termed the revised pay “skewed and insulting,” with many receiving increments as low as KSh 500, an amount they say fails to cushion them against the rising cost of living.
The salary adjustments took effect on July 1, 2025, under a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) signed between the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and three unions: the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), and the Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET). Though touted as a progressive step for educators’ welfare, the deal has been met with backlash from many who believe it missed the mark entirely.
“We expected to smile from the bank, but we ended up crying. Some of my colleagues’ payslips are showing negative balances,” said Janet, a teacher in Nyeri County.
How Much Did Teachers Receive?
A closer look at the breakdown reveals shocking disparities:
A Chief Principal under Grade D5, previously earning KSh 131,380, now earns just KSh 985 more.
A colleague at the higher end of the scale saw a KSh 1,219 increase, despite earning KSh 162,539.
A Senior Master II in Grade C4 only got KSh 590.
A primary teacher under Grade C1, expected to benefit from a 29% raise, instead received KSh 1,318.
The lowest-paid teacher, earning KSh 23,830, got an increment of KSh 1,198.
Union officials now say the much-publicized 12–29% raise was misleading. According to the KNUT Nyeri Branch Chairperson, “The lowest cadre was to receive 29%, but not on today’s salary, rather, on a projected salary for 2029.”
KUPPET’s Kisii County Chair Joseph Abincha echoed the confusion, stating, “Most teachers are frustrated. We want to understand what matrix TSC used. We need transparency on the exact percentage distribution over the four years.”
In Bomet, teachers were seen comparing payslips in disbelief, struggling to make sense of the numbers. “We feel betrayed. What we were promised is not what we received,” one teacher shared.
Even with adjustments to house, hardship, and related allowances, many educators say the small gains have been swallowed up by new tax brackets. Instead of relief, the new CBA has left many questioning whether their financial stability was ever a priority.
By Lucky Anyaje