Migori County Instructors Welfare has renewed calls for the county government to implement long overdue promotions, arguing that years of stalled career progression have affected staff morale and violated their employment rights.
The Migori Training Instructors, drawn from Vocational Training Centres across the county, converged at the County Department of Education offices to demand immediate issuance of promotion letters, saying some employees have remained in the same job groups for six to 15 years despite meeting the qualifications for advancement.
The Secretary General of the Migori County Instructors Welfare, Alphonse Onono, said the group’s visit to the department was intended to seek administrative action on their career progression.
“Our visit to the department was never politically instigated. We came to pursue the right of every instructor employed by the county government”, said Onono.
The official explained that the welfare did not understand what was causing the delay in the promotion, yet all the requirements were met in terms of promotion.
He called upon the Migori County leadership led by Governor Ochilo Ayacko to intervene and ensure the promotions are effected this July to put a smile on the demoralized county instructors.
Lilian Selma, an Instructor at one of the Vocational Training Centres in the county, maintained that under the Public Service career progression framework, employees who meet the required qualifications and performance standards should be considered for promotion after serving the prescribed period.
The Instructor argued that while officers in other county departments had advanced, vocational training instructors had been left behind.
She added that many Instructors became eligible for promotion in 2017 but are still waiting for the process to be concluded, a demoralizing factor that left many in depression.
“We were due for promotion in 2017, and this is our right, not a favor. For years we have been told the process is ongoing, but nothing has changed. We are now asking the county government to conclude the process and issue our promotion letters,” She lamented.
Chris Angira, a member of the Migori County Instructors Welfare, further said that repeated attempts to seek clarification from the Department of Education had yielded little progress, alleging that senior officials had consistently failed to provide clear timelines on when the promotions would be implemented.
He noted that the prolonged delays had left many instructors feeling overlooked despite their contribution to technical and vocational education in the county.
“Some of our colleagues have served for six, ten and even fifteen years without moving to the next job group. We have approached the department respectfully on several occasions, but we have not received a satisfactory response. We are therefore asking the county government to uphold our rights and promote us,” noted Angira.
The Instructors warned that continued delays could disrupt learning in Migori’s Vocational Training Centres if the matter remains unresolved.
They urged the county administration to fast-track the promotions and address their concerns through dialogue before the dispute escalates.
In May this year, Migori County Governor Ochilo Ayacko appeared before the Senate Education Committee to answer queries concerning Early Childhood Development Education (ECDE) and Vocational Training Centres (VTC) teacher pay disparities.
By Evetta Obuya and Bahati Livia
