Teachers report weeks without pay

Some teachers say they have gone weeks without receiving their salaries, with one claiming he has not been paid for more than 10 weeks.

Permanent Secretary for Education Navin Raj has acknowledged concerns over delayed teacher payments and urged teachers to follow established channels, starting with their heads of school and divisional offices.

Mr Raj’s comments came after some teachers recently posted to schools said they had yet to receive their salaries, with some claiming the delays had stretched for weeks.

A secondary school Agriculture teacher, currently teaching at a primary school and requesting anonymity, said she was not alone.

“It’s not only me. There are teachers from last year who still haven’t been paid,” she said.

She claimed the Ministry of Education had informed affected teachers that efforts were underway to reconcile records following a high turnover of staff.

“They said they will pay within this financial year, but no timeline was given,” she said.

The teacher also claimed she was told that if she was facing financial difficulties because of the delay, she could write to the Ministry and be replaced, allowing her to stay home.

Another teacher, also an Agriculture teacher at a secondary school who requested anonymity, said he had gone more than 10 weeks without pay.

“The school quarters are not in good condition, so we have to rent on our own and cover our expenses,” he said.

Mr Raj said the Ministry managed a large workforce and teachers must follow proper communication channels to address issues.

“When a teacher is in a school, you must understand we have almost 13,500 teachers and this is a big ministry,” he said.

He said teachers facing issues related to human resources, salary payments or other concerns should first raise them with their head of school.

“The head of school needs to look after the welfare of the teachers. If there are any issues, the head of school will raise it to the divisional office,” Mr Raj said.

He said Fiji had four divisions and nine districts, with divisional offices responsible for handling matters before referring them to the Ministry headquarters if unresolved.

“At headquarters, we have separate divisions. If it is an HR matter, the Director HR will look into it. If it is a payment issue, then the Director Finance will look into it,” he said.

Mr Raj said matters only reached his office when issues remained unresolved or when there were missing documents or serious concerns.

“When it reaches my office, that means something got missed out, something serious happened, or there was a decision or action done below me,” he said.

He stressed that teachers should follow the proper process so their concerns could be addressed efficiently.

“We are their employers. We are here to listen to them, guide them and ensure they are looked after,” Mr Raj said.

Mr Raj acknowledged that delayed payments were a concern for the Ministry and said efforts were ongoing to address the issue.

“This payment issue of teachers is very concerning for us. We want all our teachers to get paid,” he said.

He added that the Ministry had reviewed payroll processes, including Pay 17 and Pay 18 systems, to improve efficiency.

Mr Raj said heads of schools played a critical role in ensuring concerns were properly communicated.

“They are the direct supervisors in schools. They must look after the teachers and channel communication in the right way so the Ministry can address it,” he said.

He said the Ministry employed around 14,000 staff and relied on structured communication and procedures to manage operations effectively.

Teachers with queries have been advised to contact the Office of the Permanent Secretary via pseducationfj@gmail.com or navi.raaj@edu.gov.fj