Members of Parliament have backed demands by the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) for better pay for teachers who supervise, invigilate and mark national examinations. The union has warned that its members could stay away from Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) work until a new pay deal is agreed.

The push comes as the 2026 examination season gathers pace. KPSEA and KJSEA began on Monday, October 26, and KCSE written papers start on November 2, involving about 3.6 million candidates.

MPs: rates out of touch

Msambweni MP Feisal Bader told the National Assembly that the allowances paid to exam supervisors, security officers and other staff are "out of step with the cost of living and the responsibilities of the role," Kenya Today reported. He said many supervisors pay out of their own pockets for temporary accommodation near collection points so they can pick up papers on time, and that some face extra costs when posted to several centres. The Nation also reported that MPs want higher pay for invigilators and examiners as the boycott threat stands.

The issue has come up in the House before. In February 2025, Emuhaya MP Omboko Milemba, who is also KUPPET's national chairman, raised delayed payments to teachers who had supervised the 2024 exams, with support from Endebess MP Robert Pukose.

Sh55 a script

KUPPET Deputy Secretary-General Moses Nthurima says markers are paid Sh55 per script and a daily subsistence allowance of Sh150, a rate he says has not been reviewed since 1990. He put supervisors' pay at a flat Sh600 per session. The union calls the rates "wholly inadequate."

Figures reported by Switch TV are slightly different: KCSE supervisors earn Sh630 to Sh680, centre managers Sh500 to Sh550, invigilators Sh430 to Sh510, and markers between Sh35 and Sh75 per script, depending on the paper.

The union wants a minimum flat rate of Sh4,000 a day for supervisors and related officials, and at least Sh100 for each script marked. It has also complained that some teachers at marking centres are put up in crowded dormitories without enough bedding.

Boycott threat

Earlier this month, KUPPET Secretary-General Akelo Misori asked the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to step in. He told members to "sit back and not participate in any exam conducted by the Kenya National Examination Council," and warned: "we shall ensure that we paralyse the examination management in the entire 2026," Switch TV reported.

KNEC has told the union that funds have been set aside but has not said how much. Nthurima warned that without a formal agreement on daily and per-script rates, teachers would keep distancing themselves from council duties.

So far, there has been no independently confirmed disruption to the exams already under way. Supervision and invigilation went ahead on the opening day of KPSEA and KJSEA. The bigger test may come at marking, which needs thousands of KUPPET-member teachers and begins once the KCSE papers end on November 20.

The dispute adds to wider teacher complaints about delayed exam allowances. The National Council of Churches of Kenya added its voice on Monday, urging better pay and conditions for teachers who mark national exams.

Photos: The Star, Radio47