Staff turnover raises concerns over Govt media monitoring

The Ministry of Information has lost 16 staff members through resignations over the past three years, raising concerns about staffing and working conditions in its media monitoring operations.

The staffing challenges were highlighted during a review by Parliament's Standing Committee on Social Affairs, which heard that ministry employees had also been manually typing newspaper stories to produce media monitoring reports.

Permanent Secretary Eseta Nadakuitavuki said the Ministry produced 2,481 media monitoring reports during the 2023–2024 financial year.

She told the committee that staff had to read physical copies of the Fiji Sun and The Fiji Times and type out reports because the newspapers were not available online at the time.

“At that time, Fiji Sun and The Fiji Times were not online, so the team had to read physical newspapers and type out the reports,” she said.

“After 2024, both print media outlets went online, which made monitoring easier.”

The Ministry's written response said staff also relied on hard copies when internet connections were slow or electronic editions arrived late.

Physical newspapers were also used to verify stories.

Staff resignations

Ms Nadakuitavuki said the Ministry had lost employees responsible for media monitoring, including a dedicated officer who resigned to take up a more senior position in another ministry.

“The Ministry lost some dedicated media monitoring officers, as they took on roles in other Ministries, joined mainstream media, or moved into the private sector,” Ms Nadakuitavuki said.

She said 16 staff members had resigned from the Ministry over the past three years.

The Ministry had asked the Ministry of Civil Service to review salaries for entry-level positions, including media assistants, in an effort to address staffing concerns.

However, the request was unsuccessful.

“Unfortunately, they came back to say that they are correctly compensated. So that is the challenge,” Ms Nadakuitavuki said.

She said the Ministry intended to review the relevant job descriptions before resubmitting them.

Standing Committee on Social Affairs chairperson Iliesa Vanawalu said staff movement could not be prevented, making succession planning important.

“The only solution is to plan ahead with a succession plan,” he said.

The committee noted the Ministry's high staff turnover and recommended a review of the working conditions of media monitoring officers.