Union unhappy with job evaluation process

THE Fiji Public Service Association says it is not happy with how the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service is implementing a job evaluation exercise (JEE), claiming there is oversight and inaccuracies in the process.

Association general secretary Judith Kotobalavu said there has been a lack of awareness sessions for the FRCS staff members during the initial stage of the evaluation exercise.

“Majority of the staff were either not consulted or harmonised with their job descriptions (JDs) which was submitted for evaluation,” she said.

“Majority of the staff were not interviewed for a reality check on the positions which further challenged the fairness, relevancy and the quality of the JEE processes in totality.”

Ms Kotobalavu said the new salary band which was incorporated into the Remuneration Policy & Procedures and approved in August, 2023, was not disclosed to staff members until the last stage of the payout of new salaries.

“This demonstrates the lack of transparency and empathy by the FRCS towards its own staff.

“The management has now implemented the JEE results and proceeded with the payments of new salaries without discussing the pros and cons of the effect on the individual staff members.

“The payment of new salary, despite staff not signing the variation of their contracts, is not only unreasonable but appalling to say the least.

“With the promised re-evaluation of the positions of the staff by FRCS, the association anticipates that officers with vast years of experience will be fairly remunerated.”

FRCS has not responded to emailed queries on the issue.