THE turnaround time in filling vacant posts in primary schools takes too long, says Fiji Head Teachers Association president Johnson Rura.
Criticising the long wait that heads of schools have to endure for feedback, he said the Education Ministry’s head of human resources needs to do better.
“Sometimes the turnaround time for information to reach us takes weeks and even months, and I think it can be improved by the HR section,” said Mr Rura.
“We hope it can be improved.”
He said a vacant position in a primary school put a lot of pressure on the current staff.
“That means another teacher from another class has to take on the class that has no teacher.
“It adds to their workload when they already have a class to look after.”
Mr Rura also called on the ministry to have HR officers available when teachers visit the ministry’s headquarters in Suva.
Responding to Mr Rura’s concerns, Human Resources Unit acting director Taniela Domoni said they were reviewing their HR policies for better service efficiency.
“We take responsibility for that,” said Mr Domoni.
“This is my third week in office, and we would like to improve on our effectiveness and that includes the turnaround time.
“I was a teacher for 35 years and I am fully aware of the needs in the field.
“We are working on that. Their grievances concerning this are fully noted.”
Mr Domoni said they would be amalgamating all ministry HR units to one sector within their headquarters to ensure each unit is accessible to the teachers.
“We are trying to shift all of the HR officers together from the six different units we have.
“We are trying to put them together for easy access for our teachers who come to Marela House.”