President William Ruto nominated former Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary-General Wilson Sossion to serve as a member of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), a move that would see him join the constitutional body he frequently challenged during his years as the teachers’ union leader.
If Parliament approves his nomination, Sossion will join the nine-member constitutional commission responsible for registering teachers, recruiting and employing educators in public schools, deploying them to schools, promoting them and handling disciplinary matters within the teaching service.
For many teachers, Wilson Sossion is remembered as one of the country’s most outspoken trade unionists.
His years at the helm of KNUT were marked by relentless campaigns for better salaries, improved working conditions and stronger labour protections, as well as prolonged disputes with the Teachers Service Commission.
Sossion began his teaching career in 1993 at his former school, Tenwek High School in Bomet County.
Although he had always dreamed of becoming a teacher, he has said he never intended to join union leadership. Instead, fellow teachers in Bomet persuaded him to contest for the position of branch executive secretary, a decision that marked the beginning of his rise within KNUT.
His first attempt at elective union leadership in 2000 ended in defeat. At the time, he campaigned across Bomet using a donated bicycle before teachers later raised funds for a motorcycle to help him reach more schools.
In 2001, he returned to the race and won by a landslide. Two months later, he was elected to the KNUT National Executive Council, where he was introduced to national education policy and labour negotiations.
Sossion first came into the national spotlight as a regional union official in Bomet on April 27, 2001.
He continued rising through the union’s ranks, winning election as second national vice-chairman in 2007 following the retirement of Joseph Chirchir.
He later became first national vice-chairman unopposed before members elected him national chairman in 2011.
In 2013, KNUT members prevailed upon him to take up the position of Secretary-General, a role he held from December 9, 2013, until June 25, 2021.
Sossion Championing Teachers’ Rights
During his tenure, KNUT became one of the country’s most influential labour unions, with Sossion leading negotiations on teachers’ salaries, promotions, working conditions and career progression.
His leadership was characterized by hard bargaining with the government, with several nationwide strikes disrupting learning as the union sought better terms for teachers.
His biggest battles were with the Teachers Service Commission, particularly over the implementation of the 2017–2021 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
KNUT accused TSC of failing to honour agreed salary increases and promotions, leading to protests, industrial action and court battles.
The disputes also centred on teachers’ welfare, union membership and what KNUT described as attempts to weaken the union.
Leading During COVID-19
Sossion remained one of the most influential voices in Kenya’s education sector during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2020, he led calls for the postponement of the KCPE and KCSE national examinations, arguing that the lives of teachers and learners were more important than maintaining the examination calendar. The government later postponed the examinations to 2021.
In November 2020, KNUT issued a strike notice warning that teachers would not report to work in January unless all outstanding salaries were paid by TSC.
The dispute was resolved after the government released funds to support schools and teachers.
In January 2021, he again threatened industrial action after the Salaries and Remuneration Commission approved salary increments of between 16 and 32 per cent, saying the decision was irregular because it had not been negotiated with the union.
He had earlier demanded a 200 per cent salary increase, arguing that teachers had borne the economic effects of the pandemic and that the government had failed to implement the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Politics and Court Battle With TSC
Sossion entered elective politics in 2017 after he was nominated to the National Assembly by the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) to represent workers’ interests.
His move into Parliament sparked a legal and administrative battle with the Commission, which argued that he could not continue serving as a registered teacher after accepting a political office.
In 2019, TSC, through a Gazette Notice signed by then Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia, deregistered him as a teacher and removed his name from the register of teachers, effectively barring him from teaching in both public and private schools.
Wilson Sossion challenged the decision in court, arguing that the commission had acted unlawfully.
In 2021, the Employment and Labour Relations Court upheld TSC’s decision to deregister him after finding that he had failed to respond to the statutory notice issued before his removal from the register.
However, in February 2026, the Court of Appeal partly ruled in Sossion’s favor, finding that although TSC had valid grounds to end his employment after he joined partisan politics, the commission failed to follow the disciplinary procedure required under the Code of Regulations for Teachers.
The appellate judges declared the termination process procedurally flawed but did not overturn the substantive grounds for his dismissal or order his reinstatement as a teacher.
The decision revived debate over Sossion’s future in the education sector and came as he weighed a return to KNUT leadership before President William Ruto nominated him to the Teachers Service Commission.
Earlier this year, Sossion had hinted at a return to KNUT leadership ahead of the union’s elections, saying he had met the eligibility requirements and would announce his decision at the appropriate time.
Family Life
Away from public life, Sossion is a father of three children.
He lost his first wife in a road accident in 2010. In April 2016, he remarried Vivianne Kenduiywa in a private ceremony held at the Attorney General’s office.
Salary and Benefits
If Parliament approves his nomination, Sossion will earn a gross monthly salary of KSh 698,600 as a member of TSC.
According to the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC), the package comprises a basic salary of KSh 419,160, a house allowance of KSh 100,000 and a salary market adjustment of KSh 179,440.
In addition to his salary, he will be entitled to an official vehicle provided by the commission, comprehensive medical cover for himself, one spouse and up to four dependent children below the age of 25.
The medical package includes KSh 10 million inpatient cover, KSh 300,000 outpatient cover, KSh 150,000 maternity cover, KSh 75,000 dental cover and KSh 75,000 optical cover.
He will also qualify for a car loan of up to KSh 6 million and a mortgage of up to KSh 30 million at an interest rate of 3 per cent per annum.
Group life insurance and group personal accident insurance equivalent to three times his annual pensionable emoluments, an airtime allowance of up to KSh 15,000 per month, and an annual leave allowance of KSh 50,000 are also among the benefits.
As a state officer, Sossion will also be eligible for either a service gratuity or pension benefits, depending on the applicable retirement arrangement, daily subsistence allowances for official local and foreign travel, and security as determined by the Inspector-General of Police, in line with SRC guidelines for members of constitutional commissions.
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