Salaries - Channel 5 Belize

Minister of Education Unaware of BNTU’s Salary Increase Demands

This evening, Minister of Education Oscar Requena spoke with News Five by phone. During our conversation, Requena admitted that he was not aware of the five-point demands made by the Belize National Teachers Union, which includes the 8.5% salary increase sought by its members. He mentioned that this request would need to be considered by the Ministry of Finance and Cabinet.

On the phone: Oscar Requena, Minister of Education

“The Ministry of Education has had a very respectful and cordial relationship with the BNTU. We certainly see each other as partners in education and certainly this means that as partners in education, from time to time, we have to sit down, we have to dialogue, we have to collaborate with each other and really build a respectful and trustworthy relationship. With regards to the demands, honestly, I cannot speak to that because as far as I know, I have not seen or received any official communications from BNTU in relation to what their demands are.”

Isani Cayetano

“I acknowledge the fact that you have not seen or heard the demands made by the BNTU, but they are essentially asking for an 8.5% salary increase. The government is yet to put together a budget and present it. Would this be a consideration, and I know this would perhaps come from the Ministry of Finance, but would this be something that you guys would entertain as something to look at?”

Oscar Requena

“Listen, I cannot speak to something that I have not seen, but whatever the request is from the BNTU, this is a matter that has to go to the Ministry of Finance and Cabinet for consideration.”

Some Teachers Receive Payment, B.N.T.U. says Distribution Process Flawed

The Government of Belize has started paying the overdue increments owed to teachers, but the battle isn’t over yet. On Friday, Belize National Teacher’s Union President Nadia Caliz mentioned that most teachers still hadn’t received their payments, even though the school managers had the funds. On Monday, CEO of the Ministry of Education Dian Maheia explained that the money is still being distributed and should reach the teachers soon. We asked Caliz for an update on the rollout of these payments. Here’s what she had to say.

On the Phone: Caliz, President, B.N.T.U.

“ For the B.N.T.U. right now, we need to gather our own data. And by getting our own data, then we’ll be able to see that what the ministry said is correct. What I do know from our end is that some of our teachers are telling us that they have not received increments. Others are saying that they’re still waiting. But what I find very interesting is the conversation I’ve been having with some managers. They were first asked by the ministry to submit a list of names of the persons who were due increments. And they submitted those names. The list was sent back to them with either those names, some being taken up, and additional names being added on. Funding was then sent for those names. What some managers are also telling me is that they have the funds. The challenge that they are having is actually getting it to the teachers. What we from the B.N.T.U. are concerned about The mechanism being used to pay these teachers because they have to have documentation to show that these teachers receive these monies and that there’s a signature there to prove that while the ministry said that the managers will have to provide them with that same info, we want to make certain that it is actually our teachers who are receiving these funds and nobody else. At the end of the day, we our mandate is that teachers be paid their allowances and their increments. I also want to use this platform to tell my teachers, if you have not received the increment, you have not received the allowances, please go to your management so that they have a record of that. If you’re owed for years, go to your management so that they have a record of that. So after going to your management, I am going to encourage you to find all the education centers countrywide. There is one in every district and you also register the fact that you have not received your increments and you have not received your allowances because they need to have a true picture of who these teachers are just saying that it has been settled and it’s not with the management. Do they have a true picture? That’s the question. That is not really enough for us. We need numbers. The same way we’re going to be looking at our numbers, we need numbers from them as well. That is what we want.”

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https://edition.channel5belize.com/government-sends-teachers-missing-pay-some-teachers-yet-to-receive-it/

Teachers Still Waiting for Payments Despite Promises

B.N.T.U Says Ministry Cannot Wash Their Hands of Missing Increments Issue

On Monday, the CEO of the Ministry of Education, Dian Maheia, urged teachers who haven’t received their increments to report their cases to the ministry for help. Nadia Caliz, President of the National Teacher’s Union, backs this call and encourages union members to document any issues they’re facing with the payments. We spoke with Caliz today, and she stressed the importance of keeping the Ministry involved until every teacher gets paid.

Britney Gordon

“Yesterday, the ministry told us that if teachers are having any trouble with accessing these funds that have been sent to them, that they can go to the ministry. Is this a step that the union members are taking as well to file a complaint to them and have them investigate it?”

On the Phone: Nadia Caliz, President, B.N.T.U.

“It needs to happen because one of the things I said to Mr. Fonseca when I spoke to him, and even when I asked my executive secretary to write him, that they need to put a mechanism in place where teachers can go and report that they have not received these funds, since they are claiming that they sent the funds to the management. So I support that mechanism, yes I do, because I want my teachers to be paid. The distribution process will be a problem because not all of the managements have the mechanism to deal with the number of persons that they have. The biggest right now, most of the complaints that we’re getting come from Catholic teachers. The complaints were not getting increment Catholic teachers, the majority not getting allowances, Catholic teachers, majority backlog majority Catholic teachers because we asked for management. So it is clear that there is something wrong with the whole operations where the Catholic management is concerned. If we get the complaint, let’s say five complaints within an hour, four of those will be Catholic teachers. I sound very much concerned with that too. So yes, I want them to go report to the ministry and I want the ministry to have proper records of who they are and which management it is. It is key. Our teachers know they are at the middle of all of this. Whatever mechanism is in place, they are in the middle. They are caught in the middle. They are caught with the war between the unions, the ministry, the management. They are the recipients of this. They are the ones who need to get the increments. They are the ones who need to get the allowances. They should not be, go to this one, go to that one, go to that one. But, in an attempt to separate, I do support going to the ministry. I do support that. Because they need to begin to see what the union has been saying to them. They need to begin to see the true numbers.”

Government Sends Teachers Missing pay, Some Teachers yet to Receive it

Tonight, teachers are still demanding their overdue allowances and increments from the Government of Belize. Despite years of promises from the Ministry of Education, the issue remains unresolved. On December twentieth, it seemed like a resolution was finally in sight as the government issued the outstanding pay. However, several teachers claimed that the money was being withheld at the managerial level. We spoke with the CEO of the Ministry of Education, Dian Maheia, who assured us that there are no barriers preventing payment. She told News 5, “Payments were issued to the managing authorities last week as scheduled, and the disbursements to teachers happened as planned. The ministry has confirmed that some disbursements are still happening for the larger managing authorities”. Maheia further explained that the Ministry is carefully investigating the cases of teachers with additional concerns. She said, “As of this morning, three teachers had reached out with queries that reflect issues going back more than five years. As is the practice now, those cases are being reviewed and will be addressed as promptly as possible”. The Ministry has committed to providing a full update at the end of the year.

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Teachers Still Waiting for Payments Despite Promises

B.D.F. Soldier Says His Salary is Not Enough

Are B.D.F. soldiers earning enough to make ends meet? That’s the question we asked B.D.F. Commandant, Brigadier General Azariel Loria, last Friday after the latest batch of recruits graduated. While Loria assured us that the salaries are sufficient, News Five received a WhatsApp message and a digital copy of a pay slip from a concerned soldier. In his message to the Prime Minister, the soldier expressed his struggles with his salary, especially around Christmastime when he can’t afford gifts for his children. He mentioned his ten years of service and the issue of frozen increments, accusing Brigadier General Loria of not advocating enough for better pay and rations. However, Loria maintained that the salaries are fair and will be adjusted.

Brig. Gen. Azariel Loria, Commandant, B.D.F.

“Our salaries has been reviewed at the moment and it’s not only for the BDF but also for Coast Guard. And, also, I believe that there were some allowances approved to the air wing pilots and to the whole of the BDF to start to draw jungle and bush allowances. So it is something that the government is looking into. And I know that, with this, the level of cooperation that we are having from government, it is something very positive that all of us are looking into and seeing the results. No, it’s not a pay increase. We’re not getting a pay raise. It’s an adjustment where we’re looking in ways in which our pay scale could be adjusted because of that minimum wage that came into effect.”