On October 2, a group of lecturers participating in a nationwide university strike logged into a live Zoom class at Machakos University and confronted a colleague who continued teaching despite the industrial action.

The striking staff repeatedly joined the session, urging the lecturer to shut down the lesson and questioning the example he was setting for students.

The protest follows a strike called on Friday, October 2 by the University Academic Staff Union (UASU) and the Kenya Universities Staff Union (KUSU) over the government's failure to implement the 2025‑2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement.

UASU Secretary‑General Constantine Wasonga said the dispute also stems from the Ministry of Education, university councils and the National Treasury not honoring a Return‑to‑Work Formula signed on November 5, 2025, and from the lack of a financial counter‑proposal.

Video clips shared online show several lecturers entering the Zoom meeting one after another, applying pressure until the host acknowledged their presence but remained composed.

Similar tactics have been reported at other public universities, where striking staff have entered ongoing lectures, blown whistles and displayed placards to order colleagues to stop teaching.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba addressed the strike on Monday, October 5, during World Teachers’ Day events, urging lecturers to return to work and stating that most of their demands had already been met.