So, what did the government offer the unions? Reports tell us that the government side has offered to give the unions the 8.5%increase but staggered over 3 years: 3% in year one, 3% in year two, and 2.5%in year 3. Plus they have also agreed to unfreeze 2 of the increments that have been withheld. Virtual meetings with membership will be held tonight to discuss the proposals.
But, because of the stage in the political cycle - where the Briceno Administration is in its fifth year is government the joint unions say they have a better position than they did when the struck in 2021 at the height of COVID. Last night, Dean Flowers underscored what he sees as the difference:
Dean Flowers, President, PSU
"I think your memory might not be serving you well and I say that with the utmost respect. I think in terms of us having been here before, it had to do with the 10% salary cut, which was very tough because we knew the economic impact it would have had, not only on our members but on the wider Belizean community. And so those meetings were very tough, in my view, tougher than the meeting we had today because the action taken 3 years ago or about 4 years ago had far reaching implication that we're still reeling from and recovering today. And today we were able to demonstrate to the government that it's not 3 increments we lost, you have to compound that and I was able to demonstrate to them that one single public officer at the age 20 would have lost $90,000 over his or her career. So when you take and you give $30,000, which is minimum, $30,000 to each public officer, and you take $10,000, that is 300 million dollars contributed to this economy over the last 3 years and that is being conservative. And tomorrow we'll be on Open Your Eyes to show those numbers, that it's not chump change that we gave to this country, apart from the abusive working relationship that we enjoy, that's some serious money."
Nadia Caliz, President, BNTU
"They have agreed for us to sit down every year to look at inflation and based on that particular formula, we'll be adjusting salaries. So we don't have to be on the street lobbying, advocating for an increase. That is what is different this time around. And for us at the BNTU who spent a lot of time discussing with the teacher's union in Mexico, they meet every year with government, they look at the inflation and cost of living, and their salaries are adjusted accordingly. That for us we love, that is what we're going to put on the table."
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