Moi University lecturers reject offer, strike intensifies over pay

Moi University striking lecturers have rejected an offer made by the university Council, terming it as too little, both financially and non-financially.
The dons in solitary confinement have insisted that they will only return to work if the school meet their demands, vowing to continue with their industrial action.
Led by the University Academic Staff Union secretary general, Busolo Wegesa, they said the negotiations with the school management, led by Vice Chancellor Professor Kiplagat Kotut, did not bear fruit.
“We have had meetings with our employer since Thursday last week, but what was offered to us was way below our expectations. We want this issue to be treated with utmost urgency,” Busolo stated during a press briefing on Monday, 30 August 2025.
Busolo reiterated the loan burdens faced by the lecturers, which has seen a majority of them being placed in the CRB listing, as many of them go home without a pension.
Loans have become a part of our lives. We are facing harassment from the lender banks because we have defaulted on loan payments due to delayed and half salaries. We are tired,” he said.
UASU is demanding arrears amounting to over KSh9 billion, meant for the pension scheme and other benefits.
Moi University Eldoret/PHOTO:https://www.facebook.com/share/18rUonp3LQ/
Busolo’s sentiments have been echoed by UASU Moi University branch chairman Richard Okero, who stated that despite the lecturers’ dedication to work overtime to recover the syllabus after a series of strikes last year, things are getting even worse.
“We sacrificed time meant for our families and our other engagements just to recover the time lost, but our efforts have gone unnoticed. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy they say,” Okero explained.
The lecturers commenced their strike on Wednesday last week, demanding that the university pay its members’ delayed June and July 2025 salaries at the negotiated 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) rates.
UASU is also demanding the implementation of the Return-to-Work Formula signed between the union and the Moi University Council on 30 November 2024.
Return to work formula
The union insists that the return to work formula, which contains 25 clauses, has been completely ignored by the management.
“They have ignored all that we agreed, and we have decided that we will not engage in futile negotiations as we suffer,” he said.
He added that despite the appointment of a new university management and council, the situation had worsened.
“Since they came, what they did first was to declare some 120 lecturers as redundant,” he said, warning that staff morale had hit rock bottom.
The union also cited a lack of medical cover, promotions, and continued non-remittance of pension contributions for over five years.
The union has vowed not to return to work until all their demands are met, including review of promotion policies and implementation of retirement benefits as agreed in the National CBA.