The government has said that the ongoing teachers’ strike and the new industrial action by local government workers are illegal. Officials warned that anyone who continues to strike could be treated as having abandoned their job.
The Minister of Public Service, Wilson Muruli Mukasa, said on Thursday that the strikes were harming ongoing talks about salary increases and were not following the proper procedures set by the Public Service Negotiating and Consultative Council. He explained that the teachers started striking on 15th September 2025 and local government workers planned to join from 1st October, even though formal discussions had not yet begun. He added that such actions could damage the good relationship the government has with labor unions.
Teachers have been on strike for more than two weeks, while local government workers joined the action earlier this week, asking for immediate salary increases. Muruli Mukasa said that since 2017/2018, 125,276 public officers have received salary adjustments, with teachers among the top priority. He added that 77 percent of public officers now earn according to long-term pay targets, but 66 percent have not had any adjustment since 2014/2015.
The Minister also said that President Museveni had promised a phased salary increase, including a 25 percent raise for humanities teachers in the 2026/2027 financial year. Requests for salary increases for teachers, public university staff, and other underpaid workers had already been sent to the Ministry of Finance for consideration in the next budget.
Muruli Mukasa warned that the 90-day notice given by the unions did not meet the legal requirements and said any strike under the current situation would be illegal. He asked union leaders to call off the strikes and instructed teachers and local government workers to return to work within one week. He added that anyone who failed to do so would be considered to have abandoned their job and resigned.
He said that Chief Administrative Officers, Town Clerks, District Education Officers, and Resident District/City Commissioners had been told to monitor the situation and report anyone who does not return to work.
