NAIROBI — The Universities’ Academic Staff Union (UASU) has reaffirmed its resolve to sustain the ongoing nationwide industrial action, signaling to students and public university faculties that learning will remain suspended until the national government presents a concrete, satisfactory financial offer.
Addressing members and student leaders, union officials instructed university academics to remain steadfast despite mounting administrative pressure. UASU leadership emphasized that the strike—triggered by long-standing disputes over collective bargaining agreement (CBA) implementation, salary structure adjustments, and statutory remittance arrears—will not be called off based on verbal government assurances alone.
“Our stance remains unchanged: the government must put a tangible, fully funded settlement on the table before any return-to-work formula is considered,” stated union representatives, addressing concerns over extended academic calendar disruptions.
The union’s firm position follows several rounds of deadlocked consultations between UASU, the Inter-Public Universities Councils Consultative Forum (IPUCCF), and Ministry of Education officials. While public university students—popularly referred to as “comrades”—face prolonged stay-aways and academic uncertainty, union officials insist that securing sustainable funding for public higher education is essential for long-term academic stability.
As public universities nationwide remain largely non-operational, eyes now turn to the Ministries of Education and National Treasury to present a binding counteroffer capable of breaking the stalemate.