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Students at the Technical University of Kenya (TUK) face an extended disruption of learning after the Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) issued a fresh seven-day strike notice over delayed salaries and unfulfilled agreements.
The notice, dated October 13, 2025, was addressed to TUK Council Chairman Farah Idle and signed by Dr. Constantine Wasonga, the UASU National Secretary General. It was officially received by the university on the same day.
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Citing the Constitution of Kenya (2010), the Labour Relations Act (2007), and the Employment Act (2012), UASU said the strike would take effect seven days from the date of the letter unless their grievances were resolved.
The union accuses TUK of failing to implement the 2013–2017 Local Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) signed in 2019, and of neglecting to pay arrears from the 2012–2013 CBA implemented in 2014. It also claims lecturers have not received their gross salaries since July 2025, contrary to the Return-to-Work Formula signed on March 17, 2025.
Additionally, UASU faults the university for failing to establish a pension scheme as required by the Retirement Benefits Act and the Employment Act (2007), and for what it calls a violation of lecturers’ fundamental rights and freedoms.
In the notice copied to the Vice-Chancellor, and the Cabinet Secretaries for Education and Labour, Dr. Wasonga stated that lecturers would officially begin their strike on October 20, 2025 (Mashujaa Day) if the issues remain unresolved.
“Take notice that from October 20, 2025, all academic staff shall withdraw their labour and will not resume duty until the above issues are fully addressed,” the statement reads in part.
The latest strike threat comes amid an ongoing nationwide lecturers’ strike that has crippled learning in all 42 public universities for nearly a month.
Last week, lecturers rejected a counteroffer by the Inter-Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), presented through the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE), aimed at ending the stalemate.
In a letter to IPUCCF Chair Prof. Fred Simiyu, Dr. Wasonga said the offer ignored key elements of previous agreements, with only selected terms considered for negotiation.
If UASU proceeds with the TUK strike after the national one ends, students at the institution may face an even longer delay in completing their semester.
