BNTU Prepares for Demonstration in January 2025

The Belize National Teachers Union (B.N.T.U.) gathered on Thursday afternoon for simultaneous sessions across all branches. At the top of their agenda was the ongoing issue of unpaid increments and allowances for teachers. As we reported last week, the B.N.T.U. had warned the Ministry of Education that they were planning their next steps if the Briceño administration didn’t address this pressing concern. During yesterday’s meeting, an impressive one thousand, eight hundred and eighty-two teachers voted in favor of a countrywide demonstration set for January 2025. This bold move is being led by the union’s national President, Nadia Caliz. We kick off our newscast tonight with an interview with the B.N.T.U. president from earlier today.

 

Nadia Caliz, President, BNTU

“If we are unable to come together to solve this issue, because we are looking at systemic change, this is not a movement just for December thirty-first, this is something that we need to see a permanent solution be put together to solve it once and for all.  That is what we want, so the system needs to be corrected.  And you know why we’re after the system?  It’s because we have to safeguard education.  So if any politician or political fanatics see our movement as trying to bring down a government, they are crazy and they are lost. The membership brought to our attention from the ending of September that they have not received their allowances and increments.  We touched based with the ministry and we were told that, especially for allowances, you have to report to your place of work first.  You have to make certain that you were there and then those are going to be paid to you in October.  That was not done at the end of October and I asked the membership to have patience until the ending of November and when that was not done at the ending of November, all hell broke loose.  Members started reaching out to their branch presidents, presidents [started reaching out] to me.  Members who had my personal number and the BNTU number started coming to me.  And we had data because we had put out a survey asking our teachers how many of you are affected when it comes to not getting your increments, not getting your allowances and those who have also applied for salary upgrades, if you have received those upgrades.  So our data showed at that time that at least seventy-five percent of our membership did not get anything, the ones who responded.  So we’re talking about those who responded… nothing.”