The Employment and Labour Relations Court has intervened in a years-long standoff between the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and more than 100 non-local teachers who were interdicted after fleeing deadly terror attacks in Kenya’s North Eastern region.
In a decisive move, the court has ordered both parties into a court-annexed mediation process — a step many see as long overdue in a matter that has dragged on since 2020.
The directive, issued by Justice Byram Ongaya at the Milimani Law Courts, requires the TSC and the affected teachers to engage in structured negotiations by September 1, 2025. This follows years of what some have described as institutional neglect and indifference to the plight of teachers who left their workstations under threats of violence from Al-Shabaab militants.
“The cases be mentioned before the Deputy Registrar or Assistant Deputy Registrar on Monday… to identify an appropriate Mediator for purposes of Court‑Annexed Mediation,” Justice Ongaya ordered.
He further emphasised that all the interdicted teachers must attend the mediation sessions and notably summoned top TSC officials — including the Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer — to be physically present during the negotiations.
This order not only signals the court’s growing impatience with TSC’s inaction but also reflects the pressure building on the commission to clean up what has become a national embarrassment in the education sector.
The conflict originates from the January 2020 terror attack in Garissa County, where suspected Al-Shabaab militants killed three non-local teachers. This incident prompted a large-scale departure of teachers from North Eastern counties—Mandera, Wajir, and Garissa—who feared for their safety. More than 2,000 non-local teachers applied for transfers.
While TSC temporarily relocated some, it later interdicted hundreds for desertion of duty — a charge the affected teachers insist is both unjust and insensitive.
“How do you accuse someone of desertion when they were running for their life?” one of the affected teachers remarked outside the court premises.
In court documents, the teachers argue that their absence from work was not defiance but a matter of survival. They blame TSC for failing to guarantee their safety in regions under consistent terror threats.
The mediation process is set to start immediately, with a mediator to be appointed by Monday, July 21. The court has also instructed TSC to arrange an appropriate venue for the mediation.
A final follow-up on the case has been scheduled for October 22, 2025, where the court is expected to determine whether the parties have reached an agreement. Should the mediation collapse, the court has left the door open to issuing direct orders or sanctions against non-cooperative parties.
Justice Ongaya was unambiguous:
“In default of a comprehensive mediation agreement, the matter shall be mentioned before me on October 22, 2025, for such directions or orders as may be appropriate.”
The teachers, many of whom have gone years without pay, say they are cautiously hopeful but weary of what they term as “TSC’s calculated delays and indifference.”
The teachers accuse TSC of ignoring court directions and deliberately stalling solutions — a charge the commission has not publicly responded to. Legal analysts say the court’s decision to summon TSC’s top leadership into mediation is not just procedural, but symbolic — signalling that executive accountability is no longer optional.
The teachers’ unions have remained largely silent on the matter, a silence many interpret as political — especially considering the security-sensitive nature of North Eastern Kenya.
But for the affected teachers, this mediation could determine whether they return to the classroom — or remain suspended in limbo indefinitely.
“We want justice, not sympathy. We did not flee out of rebellion. We fled to stay alive,” another teacher testified in court.
With court timelines set, pressure now shifts to the TSC to come to the mediation table prepared to engage and resolve. The fate of over 100 careers — and the commission’s credibility — hangs in the balance. If the mediation fails, the court may resort to binding orders that could redefine employment protections for workers in insecure regions.
For now, all eyes remain on the process — and whether it will deliver long-denied justice to teachers who were punished not for failing to teach, but for choosing to live.
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