Kampala, Uganda: Government-employed Arts and Humanities teachers have agreed to end their month-long strike over salary disparities after a high-level meeting with President Yoweri Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni, and the Minister of Education and Sports.
The teachers, who downed their tools on June 6 and threatened to boycott the submission of student coursework and continuous assessment supervision, confirmed they would resume classes immediately and begin marking Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) assessments starting Tuesday, July 1, 2025.
“During the war, we prioritised feeding the soldiers on guard duty to ensure everyone’s safety. This teamwork enabled us to persevere. Upon our return, we explored ways to thrive despite low wages, beginning with a payment of Shs3.5 million to the Chief Justice as the highest salary,” H.E. Museveni said in a statement released after Monday’s meeting at State House.
The President pledged that the government would work towards collective solutions for the teachers, including a phased 25% salary increment, construction of staff housing, and free education for their children.
“We can develop collective solutions for Arts teachers, similar to what we implemented for soldiers. This includes building homes for teachers and ensuring their children study for free, as well as implementing a phased 25% pay increase,” Museveni noted.
“I encouraged them to return to work and collaborate with the government for a better future, which they obliged to.”
The strike, which was in its third week, had been sparked by what teachers described as poor and unfair pay compared to their Science counterparts.
According to figures shared by the teachers’ union, an Arts teacher with a degree earns a gross monthly salary of Shs1,078,162, taking home Shs841,931 after deductions, while a Science teacher at the same level earns Shs4 million gross and takes home Shs2,858,000.
On the other hand, Diploma-holding Arts teachers earn Shs784,214 gross compared to Shs2.2 million paid to Science colleagues.
Although the government has repeatedly promised to harmonise salaries, no clear timeline has been issued to end the long-standing pay gap.
The teachers’ industrial action affected schools nationwide, sparking fears of disruptions to this year’s national exams and continuous assessment schedules.
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative anews platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on X for realtime updates.
