Removing the requirement for secondary school teachers to have a work permit to get a job in the island ‘has made a big difference in a short time’.
Education Minister Tim Crookall MHK said the move to address difficulties in recruiting teachers had been welcomed by all of the department’s secondary school head teachers.
The exemption, approved by Tynwald in February, was moved by the Department of Economic Development.
Mr Crookall said: ‘It has made a big difference in a short time.’
He added: ‘I’m hopeful we will be able to fill vacancies in all those core subjects.’
In the past, secondary schools could not be confident of getting any applicants, or being able to appoint at all.
Since the exemption was brought in, schools have seen an increase in the number of applicants for teaching posts, including good fields in maths and science posts, which are among the most difficult to recruit.
A number of island teachers have also been taken on.
There are currently seven secondary teaching posts being advertised, compared with 32 vacancies in February.
Castle Rushen High School is looking for an assistant head teacher, a team leader in design and technology, a Spanish teacher, and a teacher to improve transition to secondary school.
Ballakermeen High School is advertising for a science teacher. And St Ninian’s High School, is recruiting a science teacher and a part-time psychology teacher.
In February, Ballakermeen head teacher Adrienne Burnett described the exemption as being ‘one less hoop to jump through’.
She said island schools had been losing out because they could only make candidates offers conditional of being able to get a work permit.
‘They could be waiting two months for a work permit to come through and in the meantime other head teachers will be ringing saying they can offer them a job now,’ she said.
Both Mr Crookall and Economic Development Minister John Shimmin have said the exemption does not disadvantage newly-qualified teachers.
