County governments have started to react to an order and a directive that was issued by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) on Early Childhood and Development Education (ECDE) teachers.
SRC which conducted a job evaluation for ECDE teachers on governors request has now issued grading and salary structure for the teachers and want it implemented by all 47 Counties.
However SRC only graded ECDE Certificate and Diploma teachers and failed to capture on those with Degrees.
The latest salary structure by SRC has sparked protests from the ECDE teachers. Some Counties like Vihiga, Homa Bay, Kisii and West Pokot have already indicated signs of implementing it.
According to SRC the lowest ECDE teacher i.e ECDE Teacher III (Certificate) should be paid a Minimum salary of Kshs. 7,836 and a Maximum of Kshs. 8,717.
On the other hand the highest ECDE teacher i.e Senior ECDE Teacher I (Diploma) should be paid a Minimum salary of Kshs.15,224 and a Maximum of Kshs.19,090
The Commission says it has developed the salary structure for the ECDE cadres (Diploma and Certificate levels) based on the results of job evaluation after consultative meetings with relevant stakeholders and the challenges observed in matters of funding and remuneration for the ECDc teachers at the County Government.
“This advisory supersedes any other Circular the Commission has issued on the grading and remuneration for the ECDE cadres,” says SRC CEO, Anne Gitau in a letter to Council of Governors.
“The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to communicate the job evaluation grading results and the attendant remuneration structure for the ECDE cadres for the County Government for the 2021/22 – 2024/25 remuneration review cycle for your further necessary action,” she added.
This latest move by SRC has caused panic amongst ECDE teachers who are mostly vulnerable for lacking a strong union.
The SRC salary structure is way below what governors had initially proposed to pay the teachers.
What most governors had proposed to pay ECDE teachers in their counties in 2022
| F ( Certificate) | 16250 | 3000 | 2437.5 | 3000 | 22250 |
| H ( diploma) | 27195 | 3850 | 4079 | 4000 | 35045 |
| K (Degree) | 33994 | 9600 | 5099 | 5000 | 48594 |
The SRC move will incite counties which pay teachers higher salaries to revise them downward. For example in Kirinyaga county the lowest paid teacher receives Sh22,000 while the highest gets Sh49,000 monthly.
