Arts and Humanities teachers have resolved to end their month-long strike, following a high-level engagement with President Yoweri Museveni.
The teachers, who had laid down their tools on June 6 in protest over what they described as a gross pay imbalance, announced they would resume classroom duties effective today and immediately begin marking Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) assessments.
Their industrial action had threatened to stall the national academic calendar, with thousands of students left in limbo as coursework submissions and continuous assessments were halted across the country.
In a statement issued after the meeting held at State House on Monday, President Museveni addressed the teachers’ concerns and framed his response through the lens of Uganda’s historical resilience.
“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,” the President recalled.
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Museveni acknowledged the teachers’ grievances and promised structural, long-term solutions instead of rushed, unsustainable fixes. These, he said, would mirror earlier welfare reforms introduced for the armed forces.
“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,” he noted.
The President concluded by calling on the teachers to re-engage constructively with the government, a call they agreed to heed.
“I encouraged them to return to work and collaborate with the government for a better future, which they obliged to.”
The strike brought renewed attention to the stark salary gaps between Arts and Science teachers in Uganda’s public service.
According to figures from the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU), a degree-holding Arts teacher earns a gross monthly salary of Shs1,078,162, with a net take-home of Shs841,931. In contrast, Science teachers at the same level receive Shs4 million gross and Shs2,858,000 net.
For diploma holders, the difference is equally sharp: Shs784,214 gross for Arts teachers compared to Shs2.2 million for their Science counterparts.
While the government has, on several occasions, promised to harmonise salaries across disciplines, the teachers have expressed growing frustration over the absence of a clear implementation timeline a key factor behind the prolonged industrial action.
The impact of the strike was felt nationwide, especially as schools entered a critical period for national examinations and assessments. Several school heads had raised concerns over missed learning time and the uncertainty surrounding UNEB deadlines.
With the strike now resolved, the Ministry of Education is expected to issue a revised academic plan to recover lost instructional hours.
