Our Purpose & Principles
Our Vision
To be a model branch of excellence in Advocacy, Leadership and offering Service with Distinction.
Our Mission
To be a leading branch in effectively representing, protecting and advancing the professional, economic, and social interests of members through transparent governance, institutional strengthening, capacity development and innovative service delivery to secondary teachers in Migori.
Our Commitment
We are committed to ensuring every teacher in Migori County works with dignity, receives fair compensation, and has access to professional growth opportunities and welfare support.
Our Core Values
Advocacy
We are unapologetic in our advocacy for better pay, safer working environments, and policy reforms that elevate the teaching profession.
Welfare
We are driven by a genuine commitment to serve our members — every program, campaign, and initiative is designed around the teacher's needs.
Accountability
Our leaders are accountable to members. We maintain transparent financial management and regular reporting on all union activities and resources.
Integrity
We uphold the highest standards of honesty, transparency, and accountability in all our dealings with members and stakeholders.
Inclusivity
We celebrate diversity and ensure every member — regardless of gender, age, or sub-county — has equal voice and representation in KUPPET Migori.
Professionalism
We champion continuous professional development and hold our members to the highest standards of educational excellence and ethical conduct.
Justice
We advocate for fair treatment, equal opportunity, and equitable working conditions for every teacher, regardless of gender, region, or background.
Solidarity
We believe in the strength of collective action. Together, KUPPET members speak with one powerful voice that commands attention and respect.
KUPPET History
Why the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers was formed — and the milestones it has delivered for teachers.
Between the 1960s and 1993, all teachers in Kenya belonged to a single union, KNUT. KNUT served teachers well, but was more inclined towards the welfare of primary-school teachers, who formed the bulk of its membership and leadership. From 1980, secondary-school teachers began to feel their interests were no longer being articulated. Because of their smaller numbers, they could rarely win elective positions or mount effective opposition within KNUT, and so struggled to influence its decisions.
Their salvation came from an unexpected corner — university student teacher-trainees. In 1985, Kenyatta University trainees led a strike demanding that graduate teachers be employed at the same job group as other professionals joining the civil service; graduates entered the civil service at Job Group K while graduate teachers joined the TSC at Job Group H. Trainees at Siriba and Kagumo later joined the campaign. The call for a union for post-primary teachers gained momentum in 1992, and though an attempt to register the National Union of Teachers in Kenya (NUSTIKE) in 1993 failed, the formation of a new union had become unstoppable.
Registration & Recognition (1998–2010)
On 26 November 1998, KUPPET — the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers — was registered by the Registrar of Trade Unions to represent the interests of secondary and tertiary educators, addressing the need to advocate for specialised job groups, training disparities and terms of service distinct from those of primary-school teachers. The union's primary promoter was Tom Chariga, who led the interim committee and went on to serve as a permanent trustee of KUPPET (1998–2010). At the time, a graduate teacher employed by the TSC typically earned a basic monthly salary of between KES 2,700 and KES 12,000, heavily supplemented by housing, medical and responsibility allowances.
The union spent its early years fighting for official government recognition against legal and bureaucratic challenges. It held its first General Election on 26 April 2002, where Wanyonyi Buteyo was elected the first Secretary-General — marking KUPPET's official entry into the labour movement. He lost the 2006 election to Kanyamba, who was later succeeded by Akelo Maurice Misori. In June 2010, under Secretary-General Akelo Misori, KUPPET signed its first formal Recognition Agreement with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC).
Achievements
Negotiating with government has been a journey filled with treachery, mistrust, intimidation and high-handedness — yet KUPPET has grown by leaps and bounds. Since September 2009 it has delivered:
- Harmonisation of basic salary. In 2009 a freshly employed Job Group K teacher earned a basic salary of 18,165; through shrewd negotiation this rose to 31,500 — almost a 100% increment.
- Harmonised commuter allowance (2012). The commuter allowance for Job Group K improved from 1,800 to 5,000.
- Introduction of leave allowance (2015/2016). After years of teachers being denied it, KUPPET negotiated an annual leave allowance, with the target of raising it to a full month's basic salary (a thirteenth-month allowance).
- Responsibility allowance (2016). The clause barring teachers above Job Group K from earning responsibility allowance was withdrawn, paving the way for the allowance administrators receive today.
- The CBA. Salary increments once hinged on legal notices that were never honoured. Today four-year-cycle Collective Bargaining Agreements are deposited with the Industrial Court, which acts as an arbiter.
The Road Ahead
KUPPET continues to push for the next cycle of negotiations — comprehensive medical cover, harmonisation of house allowances based on job groups rather than regions, improved basic pay, and a scheme of service for teachers with postgraduate qualifications. These can only be achieved if post-primary tutors continue to fight together.
Branch History
From humble beginnings to becoming the strongest teachers' voice in Migori County.
The idea of forming a union to champion the interests of post-primary teachers — those in secondary schools, teacher training colleges and polytechnics — was first pronounced by Rashid Kawewa in 1998. At the time, the interests of the post-primary teacher were not well canvassed within KNUT, whose primary-school section practised a tyranny of numbers: with the majority of members being primary-school teachers, it was never easy for a secondary or college teacher to win a seat, and the primary section dictated the line-up in every election. The move to form a separate union gained momentum after the death of the all-powerful KNUT Secretary General, Mr. Ambrose Adongo.
One day in October 2001, a meeting was held at Gilly Hotel, attended by Mr. Tom Chariga, Wanyonyi Buteyo, Akelo Misori, Charles Ooko, Odunga Nyamusi, Lazarus Abila, Ogutu Ode P.C., Mr. Yogo, Tobias Onyango and Oscar Ayaga, among others. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Wanyonyi Buteyo, with Mr. Tom Chariga taking the minutes. An interim office was established: Executive Secretary Akelo M.T. Misori, Assistant E.S. Mr. Yogo, Chairman Mr. Ogutu Ode P.C., Vice Chairman Odunga Nyamusi and Treasurer Tobias Onyango. When Mr. Yogo passed on, Mr. Charles Ooko was elected unanimously by the interim officials to replace him.
An office was established at Kadika Plaza in Migori town, with the officials paying rent in a monthly rotational manner. Akelo, Ogutu, Ooko and Nyamusi were the most active branch officials, each contributing Kshs. 3,000 per month — there were no remittances from the TSC at the time. The officials embarked on popularising KUPPET as the union with the best advocacy policies for teachers, in professional gatherings and even during burial ceremonies. Resistance was met from government officials and KNUT, and KUPPET was blackmailed by rivals who called it “Kupe” and “puppet”. From Migori, the team went on to Kuria, where another branch was established under Executive Secretary Mr. Murimi and Chairman Mr. Majina.
In the run-up to the 2011 elections, the two branches of Migori and Kuria agreed to merge, forming the current Migori County branch — as was the national trend to make KUPPET stronger at the grassroots. The first merger officials were Chairman Mr. Kennedy Makasembo, Executive Secretary Mr. John Kennedy Obonyo and Treasurer Mr. Omukereri, alongside Hilda Ghati (Assistant E.S.), Paul Migwambo (Vice Chairman) and Angela Odero (Assistant Treasurer), among others. This is the team that midwifed the county structure of KUPPET, on whose foundation the branch currently stands.
The Idea is Born
Rashid Kawewa first pronounces the idea of a union for post-primary teachers, whose interests were not well canvassed within KNUT. The move gains momentum after the death of KNUT Secretary General Ambrose Adongo.
Migori Branch Formed
A founding meeting at Gilly Hotel in October 2001, chaired by Wanyonyi Buteyo, establishes the interim office: E.S. Akelo M.T. Misori, Chairman Ogutu Ode P.C., Vice Chairman Odunga Nyamusi and Treasurer Tobias Onyango.
First Office at Kadika Plaza
An office opens at Kadika Plaza, Migori town. With no TSC remittances yet, active officials Akelo, Ogutu, Ooko and Nyamusi each pay Kshs. 3,000 monthly rent, popularising KUPPET despite resistance from government and KNUT.
Kuria Branch Established
From Migori, the team extends to Kuria, where a branch is established under Executive Secretary Mr. Murimi and Chairman Mr. Majina.
Migori County Branch Merger
Ahead of the 2011 elections, the Migori and Kuria branches merge to form the current Migori County branch, led by Chairman Kennedy Makasembo, E.S. John Kennedy Obonyo and Treasurer Mr. Omukereri — the team that midwifed the county structure.
A Strong Grassroots Voice
Built on that foundation, KUPPET Migori now represents post-primary teachers across all twelve sub-counties of Migori County, advancing their professional, economic and social interests.
Organizational Structure
KUPPET Migori Branch is structured to ensure democratic representation of all teachers across Migori County.
KUPPET National Executive Board
Supreme national leadership organ
National Governing Council
National policy & oversight body
Branch Executive Committee
Elected branch leadership organ
Branch Governing Council
Branch policy & oversight body
Rongo
Sub-branch
Awendo
Sub-branch
Uriri
Sub-branch
Suna East
Sub-branch
Suna West
Sub-branch
Ntimaru
Sub-branch
Kuria West
Sub-branch
Kuria East
Sub-branch
Mabera
Sub-branch
Nyatike South
Sub-branch
Nyatike West
Sub-branch
Nyatike North
Sub-branch
Branch Leadership
Meet the dedicated officials elected by KUPPET Migori members to champion your rights and welfare.
Principal Officials
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Leadership in Pictures
The committees and councils that steer KUPPET Migori on behalf of every member across the county.
Branch Executive Committee
The elected governing body responsible for the day-to-day leadership and decision-making of KUPPET Migori Branch.
Branch Governing Council
The wider council of representatives that provides oversight and policy direction for the branch across all sub-counties.
Welfare Steering Committee
The team that champions members' welfare, including the Benevolent & Burial Fund and member support programs.