Teachers Resigning From TSC for UK, US Jobs

Teachers Resigning From TSC for UK, US Jobs

Teachers are reportedly quitting the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for more lucrative positions in first-world countries. This trend highlights the financial disparities between teaching jobs locally and those available abroad, driving many Kenyan educators to seek better opportunities overseas.

One of the teachers, in an interview with NTV on Sunday, indicated that the salaries offered abroad were in six figures and far more lucrative than their earnings locally. “As a teacher in Kenya, the only thing you can afford is maybe to build a small 2-bedroom house and pay school fees for two children,” Felix Wanyaga noted, illustrating the financial limitations faced by teachers in Kenya.

Another teacher lamented that the changing terms of promotion and poor infrastructure were driving tutors out of the teaching industry. “Before, we were getting promotion on merit but then it stopped. We were told that if you need to get a promotion, you have to go back to class, so I had to go back to class,” another tutor, Silvia Wanjiru, stated. This shift in promotion policies has added to the frustrations of many educators, pushing them to seek employment elsewhere.

Reports indicate that teachers prefer jobs in the United States and the United Kingdom, which are currently experiencing a shortage of over 400,000 teachers. These countries offer not only higher salaries but also better working conditions, making them attractive destinations for Kenyan teachers.

The departures come as the government’s plan to hire 46,000 Junior Secondary School interns on a permanent and pensionable basis has stalled. President William Ruto, on Wednesday, indicated that his administration would initiate budget cuts after shelving the Finance Bill, 2024 in its entirety. The process of hiring teachers is among the affected sectors, adding to the uncertainty faced by educators.

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In February this year, the government announced that it was working on a plan to export teachers to foreign countries, even as the unemployment rate across the country continues to rise. At the time, the State Department for Diaspora Affairs noted that the Kenyan workforce was in demand abroad and that Kenyan teachers were highly sought after. This initiative aimed to create opportunities for Kenyan teachers while addressing global teacher shortages.

Around the same time, however, TSC introduced new hurdles for teachers looking for promotion in primary and secondary schools. The government, through the Teachers Service Commission (Amendment) Bill of 2024, announced that it would require all its tutors to sit for a practising certificate under continuous professional development programmes. This bill sought to amend the Teachers Service Commission Act of 2012, adding another layer of complexity for teachers seeking career advancement.

In summary, the migration of Kenyan teachers to more lucrative positions abroad underscores the financial and professional challenges faced by educators within the country. The combination of better salaries, improved working conditions, and more transparent promotion pathways in first-world countries continues to attract Kenyan teachers, further straining the local education system.

Teachers Resigning From TSC for UK, US Jobs