New teachers union, KTC, to be registered within 14 days

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new teachers union
KTC Secretary general John Mbate outside milimani commercial courts

Court has ordered the registrar of unions to register the new teachers union and give them a certificate of recruitment within 14 days.

while delivering the judgment, justice Hellen Wasilwa said that the teachers have a right to form a union of their choice as long as the name is not in conflict with any other union

The new teachers union known as Kenya Teachers Congress had moved to court seeking to compel the registrar of trade union to register them.

In the petition filed at milimani commercial court, Kenya Teachers Congress stated that it’s their constitutional right to form a trade union and that the decision by the Registrar of  Trade union to decline to register them was  Illegal and improper.

In a press briefing outside the court, KTC Secretary General John Githua Mbate said that they are targeting to have recruited more than 50,000 teachers from all over the country within the next two months.

Mbate also added that the new union will charge its members only 1% of their salary and not 2% compared to Kenya National Union Of teachers (KNUT)

He added that KTC will be there for its members and will represent them fully

The Union through two teachers, Bernard Lagat and John Githua Mbate had on the 29 of February 2016 decided to form a new teachers trade union under the name Kenya Teachers Congress and were denied a certificate to recruit members in the new union.

KNUT had opposed their registration saying that KTC is a parallel to other unions serving the teachers.

The petitioners had sued the Attorney General and the registrar of trade union and wanted the court to quash the decision by the respondents which declined to grant them a certificate of recruitment.