Reprieve for BOM teachers as Government Backdates Salary

There is reason to be happy for BOM Teachers as the Ministry of Education retracted its earlier decision of paying Board of Management Teachers for only five months. Now teachers employed on Board of Management terms will be paid for six (6) months.

In the new circular dated 26th August 2020, the PS for the Ministry of Education Dr. Belio Kipsang said that BoM teachers will now be paid beginning from July and NOT August, contrary to earlier communication.

“The Ministry of Education will support teachers employed on Board of Management (BoM) terms. However, only teachers who were working as of 15th March 2020 and will be paid for six months starting July to December 2020. They will be receiving a uniform amount of Kshs. 10,000 per month,” said Education Permanent Secretary Dr. Belio Kipsang.

Besides, Dr. Belio Kipsang also said that the latest circular supersedes the one released earlier on 20th August 2020. “This circular supersedes the one released earlier on 20th August 2020.”

Individuals who will receive this payout have to be teachers registered with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).

This amount though less than half what some teachers were earning is a huge reprieve because these teachers have not been paid since March when schools were closed to curb the spread of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Besides, Dr. Belio noted that payments in the future to the teachers will be made every month. He ruled out the possibility of advancement payments. Most important is the fact that teachers must sign for the money themselves and records to be kept for the same for later review.

What complaints have BoM teachers put forward regarding this?

The move to pay BoM teachers was not an immediate priority by the government as the ministry left them out on grounds that they are employed by the schools. Even though the BoM teachers are employed by schools, the schools themselves were receiving nothing for months and this led to some schools being left without security guards and anger mounting for BoM teachers. Besides, schools have only been filling the gap left by the shortage of teachers, as the student to teacher ratio is still wanting.

This was after the government awarded actors, artists, and Musicians 100 million stimulus package yet they are not employed by the government either. This was as a cushion for them and deservedly BoM teachers have now been remembered though it has to be said it was a bit late.

So what complaints have we received from some teachers employed on BoM terms and the public at large employed on BoM terms?

1.       The amount was based on the least earner in any BOM –employed teacher

As compared to teachers employed by TSC, the amount is approximately four times smaller as compared to a starting degree TSC-employed teacher. This means that while we are embroiled in who stole what from the COVID-19 funds from the KEMSAs and what have you, the have nots are always given the rough deal. Surely, the government could have done better in this regard and many BoM teachers who have spoken to Teacher.co.ke feel an amount double what they are offering could have suited many.

2.       The forgotten months

Most schools last paid BoM teachers in March and since then BoM teachers have been going through thick and thin to make ends meet in life. This has led to breakups of couples while some have resorted to manual work, as they are not able to provide for themselves, let alone their families. Rent arrears accumulated for the months from March until July, which is roughly four months, will have to be paid regardless of whether the package dished out by the Ministry of Education is enough or not.

Conclusion

Most teachers employed on BoM terms are happy with the little they have received or should we say going to receive as we have not been informed of any teacher who has received anything in their accounts at the time of writing this article. Therefore, BoM teachers should aim to broaden their minds and dream bigger if they are to win in these tough times and be able to provide for their families and meet their daily costs.