Former Kenya National Union of Teachers Secretary-General Wilson Sossion/FILEPayment of Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) dues did not restore former Secretary-General Wilson Sossion's membership in the union, the Employment and Labour Relations Court has ruled.
Justice Jacob Gakeri found that paying outstanding union dues, including a Sh72,000 paid by Sossion, did not automatically revive his membership after he ceased to be eligible for KNUT membership.
The finding arose from a petition Sossion filed after he sought to contest for the KNUT Secretary-General position during the union's 2026 elections.
Sossion had expressed interest in the position on February 18, 2026, but his eligibility was contested on the basis that he was no longer a member of the union.
He challenged his exclusion in court, arguing that his rights under the Labour Relations Act and the KNUT constitution had been violated.
Sossion maintained that he remained a KNUT member and had continued paying his union dues despite leaving the teaching service.
“I’m a fully paid-up member of KNUT since September 1, 1993, when I joined the teaching service. Even when I stepped out in 2021, I have paid my union dues in full up to and including June 2026, and even paid supplementary dues, which is allowed internationally,” Sossion had earlier remarked.
The dispute was linked to his earlier legal battle with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) over the termination of his teaching employment.
In February 2026, the Court of Appeal found that the procedure followed by TSC in terminating his employment did not comply with the law.
At the preliminary stage of the KNUT case, the court considered whether Sossion's payment of union dues could revive his membership.
Justice Gakeri reiterated that the Sh72,000 payment did not restore his membership.
In the final determination, the judge held that Sossion could not claim an absolute right to contest a KNUT elective position while he was not a member of the union.
"The court finds that Section 31(1) and (4) of the Labour Relations Act does not grant the first petitioner (Sossion) absolute right to be elected in the first respondent (KNUT) as a non-member," Justice Gakeri said.
The court further found that the decision by KNUT to exclude Sossion, as well as provisions of the union's constitution, did not violate or infringe his rights.
Justice Gakeri consequently found the petition without merit and dismissed it.
"It is thus the finding of the court that the petition lacks merit, it is accordingly dismissed, and parties shall bear their own costs," the judge ruled.
The judgment relates to his prior attempt to return to KNUT's leadership after his departure as the union's Secretary-General.
Sossion has since been appointed a member of the Teachers Service Commission.
