The Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi has directed the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to deduct and remit September 2026 agency fees from all Junior Secondary School (JSS) teachers, as a dispute between the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) and the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) continues.
Justice Monica Mbaru issued the interim order in a petition filed by KNUT, directing the commission to make the deductions and remit the agency fees to KUPPET in accordance with a previous consent order between the two unions.
The court order states that the TSC, identified in the proceedings as the first interested party, should “deduct and remit agency fees for September 2026” from all JSS teachers covered by the order.
The directive comes amid a long-running disagreement over which union should represent JSS teachers and which organisation is entitled to receive agency fees from teachers who are not union members but benefit from a collective bargaining agreement negotiated by a union.
Agency fees differ from ordinary union dues. They are generally payable by non-union members who benefit from terms and conditions negotiated through a collective bargaining agreement. The current dispute has therefore focused on the union entitled to receive the payments from JSS teachers who are not registered members.
The court has also directed that the Notice of Motion filed on September 16 be served, giving the relevant party 14 days to respond. The matter is scheduled for hearing on October 5, 2026, when TSC is also expected to report on compliance with the interim orders.
The dispute comes against a broader disagreement between KNUT and KUPPET over the position and governance of Junior Secondary Schools under Kenya’s Competency-Based Education system.
KUPPET has advocated for JSS to operate as autonomous schools with separate management structures, while KNUT has supported retaining JSS sections within comprehensive schools. The unions have also differed over teacher representation at the junior secondary level.
The latest case also follows earlier complaints concerning teacher classifications and deductions. In previous proceedings, questions have been raised over when individual teachers changed from union membership to agency status and how the corresponding deductions were applied.
For JSS teachers, the immediate issue is the effect of the latest order on their September 2026 pay. The court’s directive remains an interim measure as the wider dispute proceeds, with the parties expected back before the Employment and Labour Relations Court on October 5.
The hearing will provide an opportunity for the court to consider the parties’ positions and assess compliance with the interim orders, while the broader questions surrounding union representation and agency-fee deductions remain before the court.
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