Updated TSC Teacher Promotion Policy to Give Priority to Age and Length of Service

Acknowledgment for Teachers’ Long Service

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has implemented new promotion rules in an attempt to address the ongoing problem of career stagnation among teachers. According to reports, many instructors have never been promoted despite working for decades.
The Commission is now attempting to address this by recognizing their dedication and long service.

Advancement Determined by Age and Tenure

The updated promotion criteria will prioritize a teacher’s age and length of service, according to Japhet Kariuki, Nyanza TSC Regional Director. He explained that these considerations would be given priority only if the instructor in question had a spotless disciplinary history.

Both age and years of service will now be central to the promotion process, Kariuki stated, noting that the Commission’s goal is to guarantee that no teacher will go their entire career without ever being promoted.

“To address career promotion stagnation, age and years of service will now be significant factors. We don’t want a teacher to begin working and retire without ever receiving a promotion,” Kariuki stated.

He stressed that in order to align teachers with the CBC going forward, their commitment and disciplinary history will be the main criteria for promotion.

Kariuki provided information on the changes being made while speaking at Migori Stadium on the second day of the KEPSHA regional annual general meeting. These modifications are part of a larger Commission effort to improve teacher welfare and educational quality.

Issues with Transparency and Fairness in Promotions

Tuesday, Members of Parliament challenged the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) over what they called ambiguous and unjust promotion procedures. They expressed concern about the distribution of 25,252 promotion slots, pointing out allegations of unfairness and political interference in the procedure.

Nancy Macharia, the Chief Executive Officer of the TSC, spoke in front of the National Assembly Committee on Education to support the procedure. She reiterated that the procedure was grounded in law and decentralized to guarantee fair representation from all areas. The CEO stated that the commission had provided opportunities by conducting interviews at the sub-county level in its effort to be fair and inclusive.

Earlier this year, after the National Treasury distributed Sh1 billion, the promotion positions were assigned. Five thousand six hundred ninety teachers who answered November ads and nineteen thousand nine hundred forty-three who applied following the December call were among those elevated.

Dr. Macharia emphasized that priority had been given to older instructors, those who had been inactive in the same job group for a long time, and teachers in acting positions. Factors such as Teacher Performance Appraisal ratings and involvement in co-curricular activities also influenced the evaluation.

Lawmakers Ask About Equity and Disbursement

MPs voiced displeasure with the trustworthiness of the promotion exercise despite TSC’s clarifications. Questions were raised about the fact that some deserving teachers had been continuously ignored while others had been promoted numerous times in a row.

Committee Chair Julius Melly deemed the uniform distribution across counties to be suspicious and at odds with historical norms. He disputed how a teacher could be promoted multiple times while others stayed in the same post for more than ten years, claiming that it disregarded changes in population and educational demands.

The committee directed the TSC to supply detailed documentation of the promotion procedure. They asked for information like the scoring system used, the evaluation criteria, and the number of candidates per sub-county. Jamleck Muturi, the TSC chairperson, was anticipated to present complete documentation demonstrating how merit and fairness were maintained throughout the selection process, according to Melly.

Kitutu Masaba MP Clive Gisairo leveled further criticism at the commission, accusing it of having political motivations in its efforts to promote teachers uniformly across counties. He argued that giving equal slots disregarded if the activity was for employment or balancing political interests, even if the commission has the power to promote and redeploy educators.

Describing the distribution as “skewed and unbalanced,” Igembe North MP Julius Taitamu questioned why teachers from less populated counties received the same number of promotion chances as those from more densely populated areas. He argued that the distribution did not reflect equity and fairness.

Updated TSC Teacher Promotion Policy to Give Priority to Age and Length of Service