TSC to meet MPs says funds not enough to confirm 46,000 intern teachers

National Assembly Education Committee will today meet the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) over the employment of 46,000 Junior Secondary School interns.

TSC is also expected to appraise the committee on the status of promotions of teachers in 40s and 50s.

The meeting with MPs comes hot on the heels of a ruling by the Court of Appeal last week that put on hold plans to employ 46,000 intern teachers on permanent and pensionable terms.

Justices Asike Makhandia, Sankale Ole Kantai and Ngenye Macharia suspended the orders issued by the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC) requiring TSC to convert the internship to permanent and pensionable terms.

The interns will have to continue working as interns until the case filed by the Nancy Macharia-led commission is heard and determined.

In the application, TSC claimed that the orders by Justice ELRC threw its plans into disarray as the money required to hire the intern teachers on permanent and pensionable terms was not budgeted for.

“The rights of all learners in public schools underpinned under Articles 43 and 53 of the Constitution are on the verge of being violated as the Commission has no financial resources to on-board the 46,000 on permanent and pensionable terms and conditions,” argued TSC lawyer Allan Sitima.

TSC is currently facing a significant financial shortfall of Sh3.2 billion in its effort to transition over 46,000 intern teachers to permanent and pensionable positions.

Although the government has allocated Sh13.4 billion for the purpose, TSC had originally estimated that Sh16.6 billion would be needed to complete the conversion, resulting in a substantial funding gap.

The allocation was a culmination of several months of contention, including a strike, layoffs, and an ongoing court case involving the interns and the TSC.

During the presentation of the 2024-25 budget to Parliament, Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u proposed an allocation of Sh13.4 billion for this purpose.

Despite being a substantial sum, this proposal does not fully cover the TSC’s financial needs.