Teachers- TSC clarifies on subscription to Welfares, outlines validation procedure

The Teachers Service Commission, TSC, has moved to clarify on how teachers can join welfares and validate their trade unions’ membership. This comes in a backdrop of an unsanctioned KES 200 deduction from female teachers’ June, 2019 pay.

Therefore, the Commission has developed and implemented an online T-Pay system facility through which it effects and manages Third Party deductions from the salary of its employees for instance, loans, Sacco shares, Social Welfare Associations (SWA) and such other similar deductions.
Such Third Party deductions ought to
be preceded by the necessary approval from the employees.

To this end, the Commission has been undertaking a roll out of the T-pay facility in phases, since November 2016. The Commission is now in the last phase of the roll out which includes all SWAs authorized to operate the check-off facility on the Commission’s payroll and who have been trained or are being trained to operate on T-pay system by the end of June 2019.

Accordingly, the Commission wishes to issue the following guidelines in respect of
check off deductions to Social Welfare Associations (SWAs);

Social Welfare Associations (SWAs) Subscription through On-Line T-Pay System:

Social Welfare Associations (SWA) are welfare associations which include Burial Benevolent Funds (BBF), Education schemes and others welfare groups that employees subscribe to. Previously, SWAs submitted their data to the Commission
in a prescribed Excel format through the email checkofffacility@tsc.go.ke.

The submitted datasheets would be downloaded and captured directly through the T-pay system on behalf of the respective SWAs. The captured data was then approved by the T-pay system administrator and uploaded on the TSC payroll.

However, with automation, subscription through the T-pay system will be as follows:-
i). Each SWA should ensure that teachers joining as members fulfil the registration requirements as per the association’s constitutions or by-laws that govern the welfare groupings (SWA) activities, and in line with the relevant laws as stipulated by the Societies Act (Cap 108).
ii). If the constitution by-laws provide for registration through completion of forms, a copy of the duly completed and signed subscription form shouldnbe submitted to the Commission for filing in respective teachers’ personal files.
iii). The teacher then initiates the process and sends their payslip to chosen SWA(s).
iv). The respective SWAs staff captures the deductions.
v). The teacher completes the process by approving the SWAs deductions as captured.

Validation of current SWAs membership on T-pay:

Subsequent to the successful roll out of the T-pay system to all SWAs operating on the TSC payroll check-off facility, it has become necessary for the Commission to validate the membership of teachers to the various Social Welfare Associations with a view to re-affirm their membership.

In this regard, the SWA membership validation will be open for three (3) months with effect from July 2019 and the process will be as follows:
i). A teacher is required to log into the online T-pay system as is normally the case on https://payslip.tsc.go.ke
ii). A pop up window will prompt a teacher to confirm his/her respective (SWA) membership.
iii). Check (tick) the box against the record to approve the subscription.
iii). To avert impersonation, the teachers will also be expected to upload a recent passport photo, email and personal mobile number(s). The information’s should be validated by the institution Heads.
iv). All teachers are expected to comply and validate/confirm their membership to the Social Welfare Associations within the three months window provided.