The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) will recruit and promote thousands of teachers following the signing of a landmark Ksh33 billion Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with teachers’ unions.
In a statement issued on Saturday, July 18, TSC said Ksh2.54 billion has been allocated for the recruitment of new teachers, while Ksh1 billion will be used to promote teachers across all job cadres.
An additional Ksh950 million will go towards upskilling or updating the professional knowledge and teaching competencies of senior schoolteachers.
“Owing to the government’s strong support for the teaching service, TSC will, in the 2025/2026 Financial Year, recruit additional teachers at Ksh2.4 billion,” the Commission stated.
“Already, the Kenya Kwanza government has recruited 76,000 teachers in just two and a half years.”
TSC Says CBA Worth Ksh33 Billion Signed
The recruitment and promotion drive comes after the signing of the 2026–2029 CBA on July 18, 2025, between TSC and the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and the Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET).
The agreement, valued at Ksh33 billion, is a significant milestone for over 400,000 teachers. It provides substantial salary increases, new allowances, and begins the phasing out of the unpopular Career Progression Guidelines (CPG) introduced in 2018.
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Salary Increments Up to 29.6%
The first phase of the new CBA will take effect on July 1, 2025, at a cost of Ksh8.4 billion. Over Ksh1.2 billion will go toward the employer’s contribution to teachers’ pensions and other statutory deductions.
“To address long-standing salary disparities, TSC has awarded salary increments of up to 29.5% across various teaching grades,” stated TSC.
KUPPET Secretary General Akelo Misori noted that teachers in the higher job groups will receive a 5% pay increase, while the lowest-paid teachers will benefit from a 29.6% rise.
“This award in basic pay has largely favoured the ordinary teacher — the one who bears the brunt of the work in schools,” said Misori.
Misori highlighted that this move corrects previous imbalances, noting that the last CBA from 2016 to 2021 mostly benefited school administrators and principals rather than classroom teachers.
Teachers in job group D5 (ranked highest) will now earn up to Ksh167,415, while the lowest-paid teachers will see their pay rise from Ksh23,000 to about Ksh29,000. TSC said this move is aimed at narrowing the wage gap between the highest- and lowest-paid teachers.
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New Allowances and Retirement Benefit Protections
The new CBA introduces a baggage allowance of Ksh43 per kilometre for teachers transferred without having applied for the move. This is in addition to the existing disturbance allowance.
Unions also successfully negotiated a clause allowing teachers dismissed on disciplinary grounds to still receive their retirement benefits, a reversal of the previous policy.
TSC reaffirmed its dedication to improving the teaching profession by safeguarding teacher welfare, enhancing terms and conditions of service, and ensuring industrial peace in the sector.
“It is only through this commitment that, collectively as a teaching service, we can achieve the aspirations of our Constitution — which guarantees compulsory, quality basic education for all learners,” the Commission stated.
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