The Ministry of Education says it continues to face ongoing challenges with teachers refusing to take up new postings under the Ministry’s transfer policy due to personal circumstances, resulting in staffing imbalances and surplus officers within the system.
The issue was highlighted in a written response tabled in Parliament by the Minister for Education following questions raised by Opposition MP Hem Chand regarding teachers and officers reporting to Ministry headquarters and district offices.
According to the Ministry, some teachers have declined transfers because of personal reasons, including medical and family matters.
“The Ministry of Education continues to face challenges with teachers who are unwilling to take up postings as per the Transfer Policy, due to personal reasons e.g. medical, family etc,” Minister for Education, Aseri Radrodro stated.
The Ministry said the refusal of some teachers to relocate creates complications for staffing arrangements across schools.
“As a result, these teachers remain in their current positions, while those officers who were transferred to replace them end up without placements and become surplus.”
It added that surplus officers are then required to report back to the Ministry until suitable positions can be identified for them.
“Consequently, the surplus officers are required to report back to the Ministry until suitable positions can be identified for them,” the response stated.
The Ministry stressed that all staff movements and recruitment exercises are guided by the “person-to-post” principle to ensure staffing aligns with approved structures and accountability requirements.
“In all staff movements and recruitment exercises, the Ministry ensures that the person-to-post principle is consistently applied, thereby aligning staffing with established structures and maintaining accountability in the management of human resources,” the Ministry said.
The Ministry also revealed that at the beginning of the year, 16 heads of schools had been reporting to headquarters due to allegations of misconduct and referrals by senior education officials, but all have since returned to schools.
