The post-primary teachers’ union officials from Kisumu County now want the government to immediately absorb tutors who have been working on a temporary basis.
Led by the Executive Secretary of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), Kisumu chapter, Mr. George Osura, the union said the over 40,000 teachers who were hired on internship by the government should now be absorbed.
Speaking in Kisumu, Osura said the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has no other option apart from absorbing tutors who were hired as interns.
Osura said the courts have declared the internship program illegal, while the TSC has applied for an injunction.
“That, in effect, means the TSC has accepted liability, hence the need to employ the tutors,” he said.
The TSC has warned that over 43,000 intern teachers could lose their jobs following a Court of Appeal ruling that declared the internship program illegal.
On Tuesday, the TSC told the National Assembly’s Education Committee that it now faces two choices: terminate contracts or seek additional funding to employ the interns permanently and on pensionable terms.
Officials cautioned that either option could disrupt learning and put pressure on the national budget.
The February 27 ruling found that hiring trained and registered teachers as interns at lower pay than permanently employed teachers amounts to discrimination.
The Court ordered the TSC to end the practice, a decision aimed at securing better employment terms for teachers.
Earlier, while appearing before Parliament, the TSC Legal Services Director, Cavin Anyuor, explained the impact of the judgment.
“It is true that on February 27, the Court of Appeal declared the internship program illegal and unconstitutional,” he told MPs when responding to Kitutu Masaba MP Clive Gisairo’s question on whether the Commission was allowed a transition period to comply.
Anyuor said the ruling leaves the Commission with limited options, and ongoing consultations will determine the way forward.
“We have two options: to terminate the contracts or confirm them into permanent and pensionable, which means we must look for additional budgetary allocations,” he said.
Melly, the Committee Chair, confirmed discussions with the TSC acting CEO, Evaleen Mitei, on the matter.
In 2025, the government allocated Sh4.8 billion to recruit 20,000 intern teachers, showing the scale of resources that would be required to absorb all 43,000.
The TSC warned that terminating contracts could worsen teacher shortages, especially in rural and underserved areas where interns make up a large portion of the workforce.
Melly urged the Commission to prioritize keeping the interns in classrooms.
“The best thing you can do is to request the National Treasury for additional funding to absorb the interns,” he said, backing proposals from MPs to safeguard teaching positions.
The TSC also confirmed that it has halted future recruitment under the internship program unless the court ruling is overturned.
“There will be no future engagement of interns in Kenya unless the judgment is overturned,” Anyuor added.
The teacher internship program had been introduced to give graduates classroom experience and a path to permanent employment. For many young teachers, it offered a rare chance to enter a profession with limited openings.
The Court of Appeal upheld a decision by the Employment and Labour Relations Court declaring the policy unconstitutional.
“Only to that extent does the appeal succeed. We uphold the declaration by the ELRC that Circular TSC/DS/RECRUIT/ADVER/18A/VOL II dated January 4, 2023, and the subsequent internship contracts contravened the provisions of the Constitution,” the ruling reads.
Osura further demanded that junior secondary teachers be accorded full autonomy. He said many of them feel demoralized while working in hostile environments.
He said there are qualified senior teachers who can be hired to assist them during that transition.
Mr. George Osura, Executive Secretary of the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), Kisumu chapter, speaks during an interview in Kisumu on April 27, 2026. Photo by Fredrick Odiero
He, at the same time, called for the streamlining of SHA operations, noting that many teachers were still being turned away by some health facilities.
Osura said capping of payments should not apply since teachers pay through SHA. The official said some health facilities charge as much as Sh4,000 as a consultation fee, which he noted is prohibitive.
He censured the Kenya National Examinations Council for refusing to pay teachers involved in the marking of national tests.
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