Teachers across the country will, for the first time, receive a baggage allowance to cater for relocation expenses when transferred to new duty stations.
This historic provision is part of the newly signed 2025-29 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the Teachers Service Commission and teacher unions.
According to the TSC, the new rates range from Sh43 to Sh80 per kilometre, depending on the teacher’s grade, with the highest compensation going to those in Grade D5.
It is aimed at easing the financial burden of moving.
“In terms of allowances, the commission has increased the rates for payment of baggage allowance... All other allowances remain unchanged as contained in the CBA signed with the unions today,” the TSC stated.
Under this new structure, teachers in lower grades as B5 and C1, will receive Sh43 per kilometre, while those in Grades C2 to C5 will be compensated at Sh55 per kilometre.
Those in the higher job groups, including D1, D2, D3 and D4, will earn Sh68 per kilometre when moving to new stations.
The highest grade, D5, has seen the biggest adjustment, with the allowance set at Sh80 per kilometer.
While most allowances as commuter, house, and hardship allowances, remain intact, the introduction of baggage allowance is part of the commission’s broader effort to address the practical and financial realities faced by teachers during duty transfers.
It comes alongside salary increases of up to 29.5 per cent under the new CBA, aimed at narrowing the wage gap across different job groups.
Union officials have welcomed the new allowance, describing it as a fair and necessary step toward making teacher relocation more dignified and less financially burdensome.
“This is a progressive step that acknowledges the practical challenges teachers face when serving in remote or reassigned locations,” said a KNUT official.
The provision is expected to especially benefit teachers regularly deployed to hardship and insecurity-prone areas.
B5 is the newly employed primary teacher (II) while D5 is the chief principal.
