The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has been ordered to reinstate a teacher who was demoted and left earning only Ksh1.25 per month after being subjected to massive salary deductions.
The directive follows an investigation by the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ), which found that TSC violated labour laws and constitutional provisions on fair treatment of employees.
According to the Ombudsman, the teacher was unfairly demoted from headteacher to assistant teacher without being accorded a hearing or consultation as required by law. The commission ruled that the move amounted to an unfair labour practice and a breach of due process under both the Employment Act and the Fair Administrative Action Act.
“The demotion was unfair and constitutes an unfair labour practice, violating both the Employment Act and the Fair Administrative Action Act, which require prior consultation with the employee and a fair procedure,” the Ombudsman stated in its report.
The case dates back to 2021 when the teacher noticed continuous deductions from his salary totaling Ksh515,847.85, allegedly to recover what TSC termed as an overpayment. The deductions left him with a meager net pay, making it nearly impossible for him to sustain himself. In October 2024, he lodged a formal complaint with the CAJ.
The teacher had previously served as a headteacher at Mbimbini Primary School between 2014 and 2017 before being transferred to Sakai Primary School as an assistant teacher. TSC later claimed that his appointment as headteacher was erroneous and began recovering the so-called overpaid amounts dating back to 2017.
However, the Ombudsman faulted TSC for failing to provide any evidence of how the alleged appointment error occurred or who was responsible. It noted that the teacher’s headteacher appointment had been confirmed in official correspondence, yet no disciplinary or administrative process was initiated before his demotion.
CAJ further observed that TSC had ignored Section 10(5) of the Employment Act, which requires employers to consult employees before altering their terms of employment. It also cited Section 19(3) of the same Act, which mandates that employees must retain at least one-third of their gross salary to maintain their dignity and livelihood.
The Ombudsman dismissed TSC’s justification that the teacher’s promotion was an error, pointing out that the commission failed to show any formal investigations or disciplinary actions to support that claim.
As a result, CAJ directed TSC to reinstate the teacher to his rightful position, pay all outstanding dues, and refund all amounts unlawfully deducted from his salary since August 2021.
