Lecturers shock as PSC slashes university dons' retirement age by up to 15 years
Education
By
Lewis Nyaundi
| Aug 05, 2026
Shocking details have emerged of a government plan that could force thousands of university lecturers and research scientists to retire years earlier than expected, triggering outrage among academic staff and setting the stage for a nationwide strike just weeks before universities reopen.
An addendum circular issued by the Public Service Commission (PSC) proposes sweeping changes to the mandatory retirement age for academic staff in public universities, research institutions and equivalent institutions, effectively reducing the retirement age for some cadres by as much as 15 years.
The proposal, contained in a circular dated April 28, 2026, marks one of the most far-reaching changes to employment terms in Kenya's university sector in years.
The changes would affect professors, associate professors, senior lecturers, lecturers, tutorial fellows, graduate assistants and research scientists.
Under the proposed changes, professors and associate professors, who currently retire at 74 years, will now leave office at 70, four years earlier.
Senior lecturers will retire at 65 instead of 74, cutting their careers short by nine years.
The biggest casualty will be lecturers and research fellows whose retirement age will fall from 74 to 60 years, effectively wiping out 14 years of service.
Assistant lecturers, tutorial fellows and junior research fellows will retire at 60 instead of 65, while graduate assistants and research assistants will also retire at 60 from the current 65 years.
Research scientists serving in public research institutions will equally be affected, with PhD holders and Master's degree holders with relevant publications retiring at 65 instead of 70.
The circular further states that all teaching, non-teaching and research staff who have not attained the newly prescribed retirement age will retire immediately upon reaching the new limits.
However, officers who have already surpassed the proposed retirement age before implementation will continue serving under the terms that existed before the issuance of the circular until the expiry of their current contracts.
All new appointments, however, will strictly comply with the revised retirement ages.
The move has sent shockwaves through public universities, where lecturers say the policy threatens to worsen an already severe staffing crisis, with universities struggling with lecturer shortages, ballooning student enrolment and delayed recruitment.
The Universities Academic Staff Union (UASU) now says it will not allow the changes to take effect, arguing that the PSC has no legal authority to alter retirement terms negotiated through collective bargaining agreements.
On Tuesday, UASU Secretary General Constantine Wasonga warned that the union was ready to paralyse learning unless the retirement proposal and several other unresolved labour issues are addressed before universities reopen in September.
"The Public Service Commission should not interfere with the legally negotiated terms and conditions of service for university staff. Retirement age was mutually negotiated. A circular from PSC cannot amend or override a negotiated Collective Bargaining Agreement," Wasonga said.
He maintained that the union never negotiated retirement terms with the commission, insisting the changes amount to a unilateral variation of workers' contracts.
The retirement dispute now adds to a growing list of grievances that have pushed lecturers closer to industrial action.
At the top of the union's demands is the immediate payment of Sh6.6 billion in salary arrears arising from the 2017-2021 and the 2021-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreements.
"We were informed the arrears are being processed. The only thing I can say is expedite the release of arrears for 2017-2021 and 2021-2025 in total. Not quarter arrears. I never negotiated quarter arrears," Wasonga said.
The union is also demanding the immediate conclusion of negotiations for the 2025-2029 CBA, saying talks have stalled despite an earlier agreement to conclude them within 30 days.
"We agreed that we were supposed to conclude the 2025-2029 CBA within 30 days. Now we are here and we are not moving. Some students are expected to report later this month, but we must conclude the 2025-2029 CBA before universities open in September," he said.
But that’s not all, the union also takes issue with the lack of harmonisation of allowances across all public universities.
"If you don't harmonise allowances across all public universities, there will be no CBA," Wasonga warned.
He also accused the government of failing to implement the car loan and mortgage scheme for lecturers despite approval by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission more than a decade ago.
"Lecturers cannot get car loans and mortgages, a scheme SRC approved in 2014. Other public servants are enjoying it while university lecturers have been left behind," he said.
Another major concern raised by UASU is a proposal to finance university salaries from student fees instead of direct Exchequer allocations.
"Lecturers will not accept to be paid from student fees. Suppose students don't pay? Suppose students defer? Salaries should come from the Exchequer every month. You cannot tie lecturers' salaries to the number of students," Wasonga said.
The union also faulted universities for relying heavily on part-time lecturers instead of recruiting permanent academic staff.
"There is gross understaffing in public universities. Vice chancellors think lecturers can simply be overworked. Our position is three units per semester. If there is more work, recruit lecturers."
He said universities should abandon excessive dependence on part-time teaching, arguing that delayed payments to part-time lecturers have contributed to graduation delays.
"We don't want part-timing anymore. Employ lecturers. It is this part-time system that makes students fail to graduate because those lecturers are not paid on time."
Wasonga further criticised the growing class sizes in public universities, saying lecturers are being forced to teach hundreds, and in some cases more than 1,000 students at a time.
"Lecturers are tired of teaching marketplaces. If you walk into some lecture halls, you would think someone is addressing a public rally. Yet you still claim we are offering quality university education."
He questioned how lecturers could be expected to mark examination scripts for more than 1,000 students within two weeks while maintaining academic standards.
"How can you mark scripts for a thousand students in two weeks? Is it possible? How can you claim to be offering quality higher education when one lecturer is teaching a thousand students?"
Wasonga said unless the retirement proposal and the other outstanding issues are resolved, the union is prepared to withdraw its earlier commitment to industrial peace.
"If what I have said here is not addressed before September, I am withdrawing my statement that I would call another strike in 2030. I am withdrawing it. I can call a strike any time from now," he declared.