FTA to resubmit application after secret ballot rejection

The Fijian Teachers Association will resubmit their application after the Registrar of Trade Unions rejected their request to conduct a secret ballot.

FTA General Secretary, Paula Manumanunitoga says after all the documentation and negotiations over the last two years and even before the FijiFirst era, they have been requesting for a pay rise for teachers.

Manumanunitoga says they are questioning whether they are living in a democratic country, given that their application for a secret ballot has been rejected.

He says it feels like they are living in the FijiFirst era again because there appears to be no choice.

He recalls that in 2018, they made six applications for a protest march, all of which were rejected.

This is their first application under the current government, and it has faced the same fate.

He adds that they have discussed the issue with the Fiji Teachers Union and plan to negotiate again with the employers.

They will reapply for the secret ballot.