Teachers are losing patience with the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC), and many are now threatening to sit out this year’s exam administration altogether unless they’re paid what they’re owed, according to KUPPET Secretary General Akello Misori.
Speaking on the matter, Misori didn’t mince his words about where teachers currently stand. “Our teachers have clearly expressed misgivings about taking part in this and, in fact, the majority of them are threatening that they will not take part in this exam administration, which we clearly agree with,” he said.
For Misori, this isn’t a one-off complaint but part of a pattern that’s been wearing teachers down for years. Delayed payments, he argued, have become almost routine, a frustrating reality for a group of professionals whose work is central to keeping the integrity of national exams intact.
It’s not just about delays, either. Misori also took issue with how little teachers are actually paid for the job in the first place, saying the allowances on offer don’t come close to reflecting the workload and responsibility involved.
To put it in perspective: up until 2024, invigilators were earning just Ksh400 a day, supervisors Ksh450, and centre managers Ksh500. KNEC did bump those figures up by Ksh50 across the board in 2025, but according to Misori, that adjustment still falls well short of what’s fair.
He drew a pointed comparison to another sector entirely, construction, to make his case. “Most of these exams are being managed by monies which are not even given to construction workers. Construction workers leave the site with not less than Ksh1,000 per day,” he said, arguing that teachers overseeing something as high-stakes as national examinations deserve at least as much.
The unions are now pushing the government to act, and quickly. Their demand is twofold: release the outstanding funds owed to KNEC without further delay, and revisit the examination allowances altogether.
Their message to the government is blunt: teachers won’t keep showing up to administer national exams under the current terms, and something will have to give before the exam season gets underway.
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