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KAMPALA — The Uganda National Teachers Union (UNATU) has announced the suspension of its ongoing industrial action, opting instead to take its demands for fair pay to Parliament.
In a statement signed by General Secretary Baguma Filbert Bates, the union emphasized that the decision should not be mistaken for surrender, but rather a shift in strategy aimed at achieving lasting solutions through a higher level of engagement with the government.
“This is not a withdrawal of our demands but a move to a more powerful level of engagement,” Baguma said, urging teachers to remain calm, united, and vigilant.
The union has given the legislators two weeks to address long-standing salary disparities between science and arts teachers.
The strike, which began last month, was sparked by the government’s decision to raise salaries for science teachers while leaving out their colleagues in the arts and humanities — a move the union said was discriminatory and divisive within the education sector.
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For more than four weeks, Unatu leaders engaged in a series of negotiations with government officials, including a recent meeting with Speaker of Parliament Anita Annet Among.
The Speaker directed the Education and Public Service Committees to investigate the matter and report back within two weeks.
UNATU’s demands are centered on the implementation of a salary enhancement principle agreed upon with the Public Service Unions in 2018. The union insists that this principle should cover teachers in both primary and post-primary institutions, particularly those in the arts and humanities, who have long decried salary disparities.
According to the union’s proposed pay structure for the 2026/2027 financial year, teachers are expected to earn as follows:
The union stressed that its struggle goes beyond teachers’ welfare, arguing that motivated educators are essential to the success of learners and the stability of the education system.
“This is not about UNATU alone; it is about the learners whose dreams depend on inspired and motivated teachers,” the statement read.
UNATU has now turned to Parliament, urging lawmakers to uphold their constitutional duty to ensure fairness and government accountability. The union called on Members of Parliament to stand with teachers, warning that history would judge them harshly if they failed to act justly.
“If Parliament stands for justice, history will remember you as heroes and heroines of fairness. But if you choose betrayal, the record will never forget,” UNATU stated.
The union concluded its message with a rallying declaration of resilience and unity:
“We remain strong, vigilant, and unshaken in our commitment to our members’ cause — because we are, the nation is.”
