LECTURERS ISSUE 7-DAY NATIONWIDE STRIKE NOTICE OVER CBA FUNDING

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September 24, 2026

​Public university operations across the country face imminent paralysis after the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) issued a seven-day nationwide strike notice starting midnight next Friday, October 2, 2026.

​The union accused the Ministry of Education, the National Treasury, and university councils of failing to honor the Return-to-Work Formula signed on November 5, 2025, and neglecting to provide a financial counter-proposal for the 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

​Addressing the media on Thursday, UASU Secretary-General Dr. Constantine Wasonga revealed that negotiations held at Machakos University since last year had turned out to be an “exercise in futility.”

​According to Dr. Wasonga, the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) disclosed during a meeting on Monday, September 21, 2026, that neither the Ministry of Education nor the National Treasury had issued a written funding commitment through the National Exchequer. Consequently, SRC stated it could not issue the required constitutional advice to facilitate counter-proposals.

​”While other employees in the public education sector concluded their 2025–2029 CBAs last year, lecturers in public universities have been abandoned,” stated UASU in the press release.

​Rejection of ‘Market-Based’ Funding Model

​The union firmly rejected claims attributed to SRC that funding for public university lecturers’ pay might be sourced from student fees and market-based mechanisms under proposed legal reforms.

​UASU criticized top government officials for directing unions to rely on social media declarations, including X (formerly Twitter) posts by Council of Economic Advisers chairperson Dr. David Ndii, or to interpret implied provisions in the pending Tertiary Education Placement and Funding Bill, 2026.

​”Do we still have public universities or have they changed to market-based universities? Has university policy been changed through tweets?” UASU posed. “The remuneration of public university academic staff must be secured from the National Exchequer, as required by the Constitution.”

​The union reiterated that lecturers are public officers under the Constitution, warning against any back-door attempts to strip them of this status.

​UASU Demands

​To avert the strike, UASU outlined five core conditions:

1. ​Immediate negotiation, signing, registration, and implementation of the 2025–2029 CBA.

1. ​Written commitment from the Ministry of Education and National Treasury to fund the CBA through the National Exchequer.

1. ​An immediate halt to any attempts to strip academic staff of their public officer status.

1. ​Explicit statutory provisions in the Tertiary Education Placement and Funding Bill, 2026, safeguarding lecturer remuneration from the Exchequer.

1. ​Meaningful participation in developing human resource instruments currently being prepared by the Public Service Commission (PSC).

​”A dignified, fairly remunerated academic staff is critical for the quality of public university education, safeguarding the future of students, and the socio-economic development of Kenya,” the union stated.