There was joy and jubilation in Tharaka Nithi county when County officials started issuing employment letters to ECDE teachers in the county on permanent terms.
More than 460 qualified teachers were issued with the letters which will make their job more secure with enhanced salaries.
“On behalf of Tharaka Nithi county Public Service Board, Iam pleased to offer you appointment letter to the position of Assistant ECDE Caregiver III effective 1st March, 2020. Your terms of employment will be permanent. You have been placed in Job Group CPSB 13” read a letter for Muthoni who could not hide her joy.
The teachers will start at Basic salary kshs. 18,270 for the lowest level with House allowance of kshs 2,700 and Commuter allowance of kshs 3,000.
This comes at a time when the ECDE teachers are pushing for the implementation of the Schemes of Service by county governments. The ECDE bill is currently in the senate and if its passed it will see these teachers enjoying better salaries. Other counties which pays ECDE teachers well include Kwale, Bomet, Turkana and Tana River counties where a teacher earns upto kshs 75,000 in salary.
Last month an ECDE umbrella by the name TETA were able to raise more than fifty thousand to help set up a national office in Nairobi. Since the coming of the new curriculum the functions of the ECDE teacher has been well defined but still they are suffering exploitation due to lack of a Scheme of Service which will protect them from callous employers. The employment of ECDE teachers was taken to counties after TSC unsuccessfully contested it in a court of law.
