University Academic Staff Union secretary general Constantine Wasonga addressing the media at Uniafric House, Nairobi, August 4, 2026. /SCREENGRABUniversity Academic Staff Union (UASU) has directed universities to stop hiring lecturers on part-time terms, arguing the practice denies academics opportunities for permanent and pensionable employment.
UASU secretary general Constantine Wasonga said universities should prioritise recruitment of full-time lecturers instead of relying on part-time teaching to address staffing gaps.
Speaking on Tuesday at the union headquarters at Uniafric House in Nairobi, Wasonga said any engagement of UASU members on part-time terms must be negotiated with the union.
"I'm now commanding you from Uniafric House, stop taking part-time lecturers because by the time you're taking those part-time lessons, you're denying your sister, you're denying your brother, you're denying your relatives opportunity to be employed," he said.
The union issued the directive as it amplified its opposition to the Public Service Commission (PSC) decision to lower the retirement age for lecturers, warning the move could worsen staffing shortages in universities.
Under the new framework, academic and research staff will retire between the ages of 60 and 75, depending on their position and whether they are registered as persons with disability.
Professors and research professors who previously retired at 74 will now retire at 70 years. Those with disabilities will retire at 75 years.
UASU's University of Nairobi chapter on Monday said the institution's teaching workforce had declined from about 2,000 lecturers to about 1,200 since 2020, and the new retirement plan would slash the number by a further 40 per cent, widening the deficit.
Wasonga said similar shortages were affecting other universities, forcing institutions to rely on part-time lecturers to bridge the gap.
"Have you ever heard that the government has allocated this sum of money for recruitment of lecturers in this country?" he posed.
He said universities had increasingly depended on the commitment of existing academic staff, but the arrangement had come at a cost to lecturers who take up part-time teaching assignments without clear terms.
"It is our members that make universities feel comfortable," Wasonga said.
"Stop it forthwith. Those part-time, they don't pay, and as a union, if we are to have part-time, then we must determine the rates."
Wasonga said the country lacked a clear recruitment plan for university lecturers, leaving about 9,000 academics to serve a student population of close to one million.
The UASU boss said the absence of a standard payment structure for part-time lecturers had created room for exploitation, with institutions paying varying rates for similar teaching responsibilities.
"Others teach with Sh500, others teach a lesson with Sh800, others teach with Sh2,500. There must be uniformity in the payment of part-time, and it has to be negotiated by UASU," he said.
Wasonga said allowing universities to independently determine the terms and conditions for part-time lecturers disadvantaged academics.
"Some of our members even go to class before they get appointment letters, so claiming part-time lessons becomes difficult. What we are telling universities now that I have given order is that there will be no part-time. Can you now recruit?" he said.
