A Strike Enters Its Third Week

The nationwide university lecturers’ strike has entered its third week, with no sign of resolution. The standoff has crippled public universities, leaving thousands of students stranded as academic schedules collapse. Despite repeated government assurances, union leaders insist they will not return to lecture halls until their financial demands are fully honoured.

At the centre of the dispute are unpaid arrears running into billions of shillings and the failure to initiate negotiations for a new pay cycle. The University Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya University Staff Union (KUSU) have stood firmly together, declaring that this strike will not end with half measures.

The Unions’ Demands

UASU Chairperson Grace Nyongesa, speaking in Nairobi, reaffirmed that the unions’ patience had worn thin. She underscored two non-negotiable demands: the complete implementation of the 2021–2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and the immediate commencement of talks for the 2025–2029 CBA.

“We shall remain outside until the issues raised are addressed,” she declared, rejecting partial solutions. For the unions, the issue is not just about unpaid arrears—it is about respect for agreements already signed and sanctified by law.

The lecturers are pressing for the settlement of Ksh.7.9 billion owed from the previous 2017–2021 CBA, in addition to full compliance with the current cycle.

Court Orders Versus University Management

The dispute is not merely a labour matter; it is also a legal one. According to KUSU Secretary-General Charles Mukhwaya, the Attorney General issued an advisory earlier this year, and the courts ordered universities to pay the arrears. He accused vice chancellors and university councils of deliberately misleading the public and ignoring court directives.

“The court has directed that we be paid. We cannot negotiate a court judgment. Let them pay,” Mukhwaya emphasized, warning that failure to comply amounts to contempt of court. He further accused universities of hiding behind bureaucratic excuses while disregarding legally binding obligations.

Government’s Balancing Act

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba has found himself in the eye of the storm. Last week, he warned lecturers of disciplinary action, pointing to a High Court order that had temporarily suspended the strike. He insisted that the government had already released Ksh.2.5 billion to cater for Phase 2 of the current CBA, framing it as a good-faith gesture.

Yet, this has done little to appease the unions, who argue that the funds are insufficient compared to the total arrears owed. They contend that the Treasury’s allocation is a drop in the ocean and does not address the structural underfunding of public universities or the erosion of lecturers’ earnings by inflation.

The Ripple Effect on Students

The most immediate victims of this stalemate are students. With classes suspended for weeks, examinations postponed, and research projects stalled, many fear that semesters will once again spill over into the following year. Some student groups have threatened to take to the streets if the government and unions fail to break the deadlock.

For a sector already struggling with credibility, this prolonged disruption has intensified concerns over the quality and predictability of higher education in Kenya. Parents and guardians, too, are growing restless, questioning why university education must repeatedly be held hostage by disputes over wages and arrears.

The Broader Political Undertones

The lecturers’ strike is not just about salaries—it reflects the wider challenge of labour relations under an increasingly cash-strapped government. Treasury’s inability to release the full arrears points to deeper fiscal pressures, with unions now positioning themselves as defenders of contractual integrity against what they see as state dishonesty.

This confrontation has turned into a test of political willpower. The government’s reluctance to concede fully may be driven by fear of setting a precedent for other public-sector unions. But by ignoring the lecturers’ grievances, it risks an escalation that could spread discontent across other sectors of the civil service.