When a newly hired secondary school teacher is sent to the Teachers Service Commission in Kenya, he or she is assigned to job group K, which is the starting point for what is now known as grade C2, also known as Secondary Teacher II under the TSC plan.
A teacher receives an appointment letter shortly after starting work, which always states that a newly hired teacher will be on probation for at least six months.
If the teacher’s performance does not meet TSC’s expectations, the probationary period may be extended.
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After three years of service, an employed teacher is automatically promoted to grade C3, which was previously known as job group L.
According to TSC standards, the minimum prerequisite for teaching in a secondary school in Kenya is a diploma, but the majority of secondary school teachers in Kenya nowadays are university graduates from Kenyan universities.
Newly hired teachers in (grade C2), formerly known as job group K, receive a commuting payment of KSH 5000 and a rental home allowance of KSH 7500.
Monthly deductions are also available to some teachers. Unless the teacher is repaying a HELB loan, one can take home ksh:38,000 after all deductions.
However, if one has benefited from a HELB loan, the amount may change because a portion of the loan is deducted.
The wage of a freshly hired graduate teacher in a secondary school in Kenya is broken down below.
| No. | Break down | Amount (Kshs) |
| 1 | Basic Salary | 34,955.00 |
| 2 | Rental House Allowance | 7,500.00 |
| 3 | Commuter Allowance | 5,000.00 |
| 4 | Total Earnings (Before deductions) | 47,455.00 |
It is important to note that there are several deductions subjected to salary of a newly employed teacher. They include;
- Widows and Children’s Pension Scheme (WCPS) which is about Kshs. 699.10.
- University Loan Recovery about Kshs. 5000. Note that this is only affecting those teachers who benefitted from HELB.
- Union Contribution; could be Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers(KUPPET), Kenya National Union of Teachers(KNUT) or Kenya Women Teachers Association(KEWOTA).
- Pay As You Earn (PAYE).
Other deductions could be be either sacco savings or loan repayment if the teacher is servicing a loan.
