B.N.T.U. Slams Government Interference, Questions Whether Management Caved In

Patrick Faber

Even as teachers are back in the classrooms, the B.N.T.U. and the ministry remain at odds. On Tuesday, Government issued a release stating that it is in direct discussion with the Managing Authorities to formulate a plan for making up a considerable portion of teaching time lost to the recent strike.  And following the Chief Education Officer’s interview earlier today, B.N.T.U. President Luke Palacio convened a press brief to provide an update on where the union stands.  Palacio says that the Education Minister Patrick Faber has been disingenuous in his approach to dealing with the issue.

Luke Palacio

Luke Palacio, National President, B.N.T.U.

“Basically the Ministry of Education has indicated that they intend to deduct from the salaries of our teachers who were on strike, at the end of this month.  Again, the disingenuousness of the ministry and particularly the Minister of Education has shown up.  We know that traditionally the pay sheet for salaries from the different managements are usually submitted in the second week of the month; however, the minister in his presentation has indicated that yesterday Wednesday, would have been the deadline for those managements to submit those pay sheets.  Again, we find that that is a part of his continued effort to try and see if he can have the GSU buckle under his pressure.  Unfortunately, a number of managements have seemed to have complied with that request and I say this because I know, as a member of the Teaching Service Commission, usually the first Friday of the month there would be a circulated list of persons who are seeking, I mean would have gotten recommendation from their respective managements to the Teaching [Services] Commission to have them employed.  And so those persons would then make it on to the pay sheet which would have been submitted again, usually by the ninth of the month.  So for us, I think that is cause for concern.  I don’t know and I cannot blame the managements totally, if it is that they are in collusion or they have been, again, bullied by the minister and his personnel to carry out such an activity.  Again, it is so unfortunate that in our country, the government which should be looking to teachers to continue the development of this country by educating our children, they have now become victims of a government that has decided that at whatever costs we are going to punish these teachers for standing up for Belize, for standing up for what is right.”