Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad speaking during an interview with FBC's Your Voice

Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad says major civil servant unions should be happy about the salary increase announced in the budget.

Clarifying why the government did not meet the expectations of certain unions, particularly the Fiji Teachers Union and the Fijian Teachers Association, Prasad says a single budget cannot address all demands, as more discussions need to take place.

He says the civil service is bloated, and the government is spending about $1.2 billion out of a budget of $4.5 billion on salaries and wages. He adds that this budget has allocated an additional $85 million, labelling it a significant allocation.

“Some of the grievances that unions raised about job evaluation cannot be resolved through a single budget. That will have to be dealt with in a proper job evaluation exercise. As I announced in the budget, we are working with the Australian government so that by the time we come to the next budget, we will be able to review and understand what has happened to the civil service in the last 10 years.”

Prasad says that because of what has happened in the past many years, many people who deserved to be in key positions were sidelined due to the Open Merit Recruitment and Selection guideline, which he labels a failure.

The Finance Minister says there was no central control.

He adds that while the government works with Australia, it recognizes the immediate need to provide some relief in the budget announced last Friday.

He says, in fact, the unions should be happy as he reassures them that the government’s door remains open for further discussions should the need arise.