U.B.F.S.U. Fires Off Letter to Board of Trustees

The national university is facing deep financial woes and things are in a state of flux. Today, President Clement Sankat of the University of Belize met with the university’s Board of Trustees as it relates to the university’s financial exigency. To cut costs, UB is proposing cuts in salaries and programmes which will end with redundancy for a number of faculty and staff members. But in mid-June, the UB Faculty and Staff Union reached out to President Sankat asking for the protocols set out by the handbook to be exercised and that they be consulted as the bargaining agent for faculty and staff. That matter has not been addressed so the UB union is fighting to have a say.

Pio Saqui

Dr. Pio Saqui, President, U.B.F.S.U.

“We are mindful and let us be clear that the global pandemic has caused difficulty, have caused hardship for the country of Belize and the University of Belize is not immune to that we are well aware that we are going to have to make some changes. And what we are asking is that the procedure outlined in the Faculty and Staff Handbook be followed, because at the very least in principle it encourages transparency and proper consultation to our faculty and staff members. That has not happened to the best of our knowledge. Whatever proposal that is being presented to the Board today is a proposal that the president and his senior management maybe has done unilaterally without consultation with the union. There must be social dialogue and bilateral discussions and in this instance, this has not happened. So whatever consultation may have happened, we don’t know about. Whatever proposal has been made has not been made with the input of the faculty and staff, so it is difficult for us to agree on anything.”