Representatives of the Kenya Visually Impaired Teachers’ Association (KEVIT) have expressed strong opposition to the Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC) over the automatic deduction of 1.5% of their salaries as agency fees to the Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET). The teachers argue that they never registered as members of KUSNET and that the union does not represent their interests.

During a sitting of the Senate Committee on Labour and Social Welfare, chaired by Sen. Julius Murgor, KEVIT Chairperson Mbugua Kamau recounted his involuntary transfer from the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) to KUSNET in February 2022. He criticised the T-Pay online platform, used by teachers to manage third-party deductions, for its lack of an option to exit KUSNET.

However, TSC CEO Nancy Macharia, who was present at the meeting, refuted Kamau's claims. She insisted that the T-Pay system grants teachers full control over their union-related deductions, allowing them to approve or halt any deductions as they see fit.

“The T-Pay system allows teachers to manage individual transactions by approving any third-party deductions they wish to be applied to their payslips,” Macharia explained. “Similarly, a teacher who desires to exit a union needs only to log into the T-Pay system and stop the deduction.”

Vice-chairperson of the Labour Committee, Sen. George Mbugua, pressed Macharia on how KUSNET, with just 52 registered members, could be collecting agency fees from 2,433 teachers. In response, Macharia clarified that TSC deducts union dues from registered KUSNET members and agency fees from teachers benefiting from the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiated by KUSNET, as per an order from the Minister of Labour and the Labour Relations Act.

Challenging this, KEVIT’s Geoffrey Wachira questioned the legitimacy of KUSNET’s claim to have negotiated benefits under the CBA. He argued that certain allowances, like the Disability Guide Allowance, existed before KUSNET’s involvement.

“Can anyone claim to negotiate for something that already exists? For instance, the Disability Guide Allowance has been there before KUSNET. How could they negotiate for something that was already in place?” Wachira asked.

Sen. Crystal Asige further probed TSC for documentary evidence proving that teachers whose salaries are deducted in favour of KUSNET had consented to it.

Sen. Murgor concluded by emphasising that the issue revolves around the freedom of employees to choose their union representation. He urged TSC to respect this freedom and to better sensitise teachers about union and agency fees.

The committee’s session was in response to a statement request by Sen. Asige, who sought clarification on the registration of teachers with disabilities into KUSNET without their consent.