Arts & Humanities Teachers Strike in Uganda: A Battle for Pay Equity

Charles Kizindo – Kampala, June 2025 (with recent developments)

Arts and humanities teachers across Uganda have taken industrial action, demanding equal pay with colleagues in science subjects. The disparity has become increasingly untenable: while science teachers enjoy substantially higher salaries, arts teachers (in subjects like history, literature, economics, religious studies) earn far less despite carrying comparable workloads.

The movement escalated in early June 2025 when arts teachers went on strike, refusing to conduct assessments among their other actions. The Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, Hon. Joel Ssenyonyi, has urged government to present a supplementary request in Parliament to allow for budget adjustments that correct these disparities.

Key Issues at Stake

Pay disparity: Science teachers have been receiving higher pay scales for years, while arts teachers have been left behind. Many feel this amounts to discrimination.

Strike action: Arts teachers’ industrial action includes non-participation in assessments, which impacts students’ academic progression and examinations.

Budget & corruption arguments: Ssenyonyi argues that a supplementary budget allocation could be used to correct pay inequities, but that public corruption (estimated losses of Shs 10 trillion annually) needs addressing to free resources.

Government Response & Public Reactions

So far, the government has not agreed to full parity but has been encouraged to do so by MPs and education stakeholders.

Parents and students are caught between concerns that the strike will disrupt examinations / assessments and the fairness of teacher compensation. Some believe the disparity undermines morale and quality in arts subjects.

Implications

For the education system: Unequal pay could discourage qualified teachers from staying in arts subjects, which may affect quality in those fields.

For social equity: Teaching arts should not be seen as less valuable — Uganda needs literature, history, economics, arts for a rounded society.

For policy: Transparent budgeting, accountability for public funds, and a strong legislative response are critical.

“They are saying they are teachers too, just like the science teachers, but they have been discriminated against severely.” — Hon. Joel Ssenyonyi
“Stop stealing taxpayers’ money and there will be money to pay the teachers.” — Ssenyonyi on corruption being part of the problem.