B.C.W.U. accuses B.T.L. of union busting

In related news from the labour front, the tribunal appointed to investigate the firing of three employees in the stores section of Belize Telecommunications Limited did not begin on Monday morning as the panel is incomplete. According to General Secretary of the Belize Communication Workers Union, Christine Perriott, both B.T.L. and the union have named their representatives but the three members appointed by the Ministry of Labour have yet to be released. News Five understands that while the Minister has already named the chairman, he has asked the National Trade Union Congress and the Belize Chamber of Commerce to select the other two appointees. If those organisations do not do so by Wednesday evening, the Minister will make two more selections. Meanwhile the B.C.W.U. continues to complain that their requests to B.T.L. for time off to meet with the Minister regarding the arbitration process and the terms of reference for the panel have not been granted. Perriott says they are now trying to schedule that meeting for Wednesday. At the same time, Perriott’s own Supreme Court hearing regarding her temporary reinstatement to the company has been set for nine Wednesday morning. Perriott is maintaining that her firing was an act of “union busting” by B.T.L.

And that allegation was backed up by the report produced by acting Labour Commissioner Adelfino Vasquez. Echoing the sentiments Labour Minister Francis Fonseca has already expressed publicly, the Vasquez report finds that Perriott’s dismissal was caused by her union activities and that her “trade union rights may have been violated.” Having said that, the report state that her redress is to be found by filing a suit in the Supreme Court. As for the future, the report recommends passing new legislation to better safeguard workers’ rights.