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Members of Parliament have voiced concern over the current teachers’ recruitment process, criticizing it for leaving behind older graduates who remain jobless even as they near retirement.
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The National Assembly’s Education Committee called the system unfair, noting that it continues to favor recent graduates while teachers aged over 45 remain unemployed.
Lawmakers are urging the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to revise the policy that distributes equal recruitment slots across all 396 subcounties, arguing it disadvantages regions with a higher number of trained teachers. Ironically, this equal distribution model was previously championed by the same committee.
During a Thursday session, the committee directed the TSC to compile a list of all unemployed teachers aged 35 and above to explore prioritizing them in future hiring. Vice Chair and Kabondo Kasipul MP Eve Obara said this data would help determine the cost of absorbing the group in one round of recruitment.
Narok Woman Representative Rebecca Tonkei supported the move, calling for firm action to address the plight of teachers who have waited for years despite investing heavily in their education. “It’s heartbreaking that some sold their property to study, only to remain jobless for over a decade,” she said.
Igembe North MP Julius Taitum criticized the current recruitment model, saying subcounties with fewer teachers are hiring recent graduates, while neighboring regions still have teachers from the 2018 class waiting to be absorbed. He called for reforms that would allow preferential hiring of older teachers.
The renewed push comes amid growing pressure from long-unemployed teachers—some who graduated as far back as 2015—who are now approaching retirement age without ever being hired. MPs are proposing that future recruitment rounds prioritize those aged 45 and above.
Appearing before the committee, TSC acting CEO Eveleen Mitei, alongside the commission’s legal director Cavin Anyuor, acknowledged the MPs’ concerns but said any age-based recruitment must follow legal guidelines. Anyuor noted that a previous attempt to cap hiring at age 45 was overturned in court as unconstitutional.
Currently, TSC allows employment of teachers up to 59 years and 11 months, maintaining that the process is non-discriminatory. However, MPs like Mary Emaase of Teso South argue that employment should be guaranteed by the age of 45 or 50 to allow at least a decade of service before retirement.
Instant Analysis:
The TSC recruitment process has come under scrutiny for leaving older qualified teachers unemployed even as they near the retirement age. While the commission works within its budget and available vacancies, growing calls for affirmative action underscore the urgency to prioritize teachers aged over 45.
Previous efforts, such as giving more weight to graduation year, have failed to significantly ease the backlog, prompting renewed demands for policy change.
