KUPPET: Teachers receive reduced July salaries despite President Ruto’s promise
Teachers have been affected by the deductions on their July salaries due to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) deductions.
The Kenya Union Of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) in Vihiga County, along with other unions like the Union of Kenya Civil Servants (UKCS), lodged complaints about this issue in a statement dated Thursday, July 27.
“We have learned that all our members have suffered an NSSF deduction to the tune of Sh 360. This deduction has come at a time when our members were eagerly waiting for the 7 to 10 percent increase in their basic salary as promised by His Excellency President William Ruto last month,” KUPPET said in the statement.
Most of the affected teachers stated that around six percent of their take-home salary was missing.
The new NSSF Act now requires a monthly contribution equivalent to 12 percent of one’s monthly salary. Six percent is deducted from the employee’s salary, while the other six percent is paid by the employer.
The updated NSSF Act is part of the proposed ways of growing Kenyans’ savings in President William Ruto’s administration, as proposed in the Finance Act 2023.
“I know there is a proposal by the SRC for the increase of salaries for different cadres of both civil servants and other public servants. They have made a recommendation to us that they want to increase salaries of civil servants by an average of between 7 and 10 percent; that is from office assistants all the way to people who serve below the PSs,” said the President on June 30 during the unveiling of digital government services at the Kenya International Convention Centre (KICC).
The Executive Secretary of KUPPET in Vihiga, Sabala Inyeni, stated in the statement that teachers do not appreciate the numerous savings schemes by the government purporting to provide a better retirement package while subjecting them to untold suffering during their period of service.