B.N.T.U. Calls Managements the Grinch who Stole Christmas

The Belize National Teachers Union is calling some school managements the “Grinch who stole Christmas.”  The powerful union fired off a press statement this evening in which it expresses its utter discontent with the decision by certain school managements to dock the salaries of the teachers who participated in a demonstration on November seventh. In the release, the B.N.T.U. warns that these schools cannot “function without the hard work, dedication and more often than not, extra time and effort given by their teachers.” In fact, the union reminds these school managements that a very large number of teachers pledge thirty to fifty dollars from their salaries monthly to these managements to aid in operational cost.  If at some point any teacher decides to discontinue such contribution, they will have the full support of their union. The B.N.T.U. says it will pursue all avenues, including legal action, to ensure a positive outcome for its members. More than one-thousand-five-hundred teachers marched in Belmopan as a tactical move to get the Ministry of Education to address the issue of hardship allowances and time off to collect salary. According to the release, Education Minister Patrick Faber alluded to the fact that the ministry had no intentions of withholding salaries and therefore those monies would not be withheld. The B.N.T.U. classifies this move by the managements as downright mean-spirited.