TSC Intern Teachers Conversion to Permanent Terms
The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) employed teachers on internship last year and this year totalling to 44,000 teachers. The commission has stated that it’s facing a major financial setback that has hindered conversion of these teacher to permanent and pensionable terms.
TSC has shown goodwill in its attempts to give these teachers job security by giving them permanent jobs but this has exposed the most glaring challenge facing the education sector in Kenya due to low budgetary allocations.
Mounting pressure to Confirm Interns
Since 2019, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and the Kenyan government has heavily relied on engaging qualified teachers in bridging the teacher shortage gap experienced in Kenyan public schools.
These teachers have always been paid meagre stipends from the commission hindering them from enjoying the full employment benefits like pension, medical cover and job security.
There has been mounting pressure year in year out from education stakeholders like teachers unions and education experts demanding the conversion of these teachers to permanent and pensionable terms.
This push from stakeholders is necessitated by the prolonged contracts that requires teachers to renew there contracts after expiry going against the initial agreement of just one year after which they will be absorbed into permanent and pensionable terms.
These teachers play a critical role in the implementation of the new curriculum yet they are not remunerated well to motivate them work peacefully to give learners the best.
Ballooning Wage Bill
The commission is likely to face one of the biggest challenge of ballooning Wage Bill if it converts these intern teachers to permanent and pensionable terms. The wage bill is set to go up since permanent and pensionable teachers receive full salary payments including allowances, pension contributions and medical over something that the commission has said is impossible as at now going by budgetary allocations.
The commission argues that if these teachers are given permanent jobs, it will require that the budget and appropriations committee to give them a higher allocation to cater for these teachers’ salaries and allowances.
This has placed the commission in a tight corner where it has to balance the urgent demand for teachers in schools and financial realities that the government is grappling with.
Since the commission does not have commensurate allocation from government, it will force the commission to either terminate the contract of the 44,000 teachers or keep them under contract for more years something that has raised more concerns from stakeholders demanding answers from the treasury.
Dependence on Treasury Funding
For this process to be smooth and allow intern teachers to be absorbed into permanent terms, the commission solely depends on the goodwill of the National Treasury of Kenya. If the treasury allocates enough money to the commission, it will have financial muscles to absorb all the 44,000 intern teachers otherwise, these teachers will continue working under contract or their contracts be terminated.
Going by the budgetary allocation proposals from the treasury, the allocation that has been given to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) still falls short of the required amount that will see all these teachers converted to permanent and pensionable terms.
This therefore will for the commission to partially absorb a section of these teachers and the remaining section will have to wait for the next financial year.
TSC Intern Teachers Conversion to Permanent Terms
Teacher Shortage
Kenyan schools are still grappling with teacher shortages especially public primary and secondary schools despite financial challenges.
With the employment of intern teachers, the deficit has been sealed partially but still the gap is wide that requires more teachers to bridge it.
If intern teachers are converted to permanent terms, it will create room for engaging another group of teacher under the same terms something that will lessen the shortage witnessed in schools across the country.
Similarly, conversion of these teachers will also ensure that learners get quality education since teachers will be motivated to work and also reduce disruptions caused by teachers going to the street demanding for their right.
If the same scenario continues where treasury allocates inadequate amount to the commission, Kenyan schools will have no option other than having teachers serving on contract with meagre salaries. This will demotivate teachers hence won’t implement the new curriculum effectively.
Phased Approach
Now that the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) is battling with low budget allocations that won’t allow for conversion of all teachers, it will be forced to implement a phased approach in giving them permanent jobs. This will involve absorption of a section of the 44,000 intern teachers rather than the initial plan of absorbing them at once.
This strategy will ease the financial burden facing the commission and solve the problem partially. At the same time it will disadvantage other remaining teachers who will prolong their uncertainty on when they will be absorbed.
We have intern teachers who have worked for one full year and were asked to renew their contract and now they are serving their second year something that will not auger well with them if they are not absorbed in time.
Implications for Intern Teachers
The commission had clear and pure intentions of absorbing intern teachers after one year period but this remains uncertain due the financial constraints its grappling with.
This move by the commission not to absorb all of them as agreed will kill the morale of those who have served with seal and vigor with hope of being absorbed into permanent basis. This will affect performance of these teachers in class something that will have dire implications on learners.
Even if the progress is slow, the government and TSC have shown interest and goodwill in absorbing them meaning they recognize the impact they have brought in the education landscape and therefore they are working on modalities to give them decent engagements.
The whole suspense facing this matter has exposed the government’s interest in balancing quality education with the few financial resources. The big question is what is their priority?
The government should understand that teachers are very instrumental in the success of education of a country and therefore they need decent working terms since otherwise will impact learner outcome negatively.
A time like this when the government is implementing a critical education system, it should be privy on how they treat teachers since it will determine the success or failure of the whole system.
Conclusion
To improver teachers’ welfare and education quality in Kenya, conversion 44,000 intern teachers to permanent terms is of importance to the Kenyan government and other education stakeholders. Implementing such large scale reform requires resources that the Teachers Service Commission claims its not in possession of.
Therefore, there is need for collaboration between the commission and National Treasury in order to find lasting solution to this menace. There is need for increased funding to the commission to ensure full conversion of intern teachers to PnP or phased implementation with the end goal being giving these teachers hope of being absorbed within certain timelines. This will ensure stability of education sector and proper implementation of the new curriculum.
Going by the vital role these intern teachers have played in Kenyan schools in implementing the new curriculum, they still remain hopeful that the government will recognize their efforts and prioritize their conversion to permanent jobs.
TSC Intern Teachers Conversion to Permanent Terms
