Today marks the sixth day of ongoing protests by the BNTU - but today it's also their first day of strike action.
So while last week, the teachers were finding time in between classes to come out with their signs, today they simply walked out of those classrooms.
The teachers staged this walk out at 11:30am across the country - and those doing online classes joined in virtually.
And from their classroom, the members of the Belize branch marched to the Marion Jones Stadium to begin their trek through the Belize City Streets. Courtney Menzies followed them along their route, and has this story.
The green sea today flooded the streets of Belize City as the BNTU members commemorated their first official day of strike with a protest march.
And when asked how long this strike action will last, well, it's going to be a while.
Elena Smith, President, BNTU
"Teachers? How far are you willing to go?"
Response
"ALL THE WAY!"
This march, which started at the Marion Jones Stadium, first began with some of the teachers walking out of the classrooms that have barely just opened, less than two weeks ago. BNTU president Elena Smith explained that until the government budges, they won't either.
Elena Smith, President, BNTU
"Today is our first day of strike, this morning our teachers went to school, did their work as they normally would and then they walked off at 11:30 so this is the beginning of a start to however long it will take us to get what it is that we want."
"The BNTU is calling on the prime minister to take his ten off the table. We are also calling on the prime minister to remove that 6 or 8 months they are saying to implement these good governance issues. So if you want to call off, let's call off. You want me to go back then you move back as well and you do what you have to do."
But what about the students who have already endured a year of online classes and now don't even have that option to get their daily lessons in. Smith said that the teachers have been working all this time, and now it's time to take action.
Elena Smith, President, BNTU
"We want to make it very clear that whatever has happened has nothing to do with us as teachers. Nobody could have controlled what would have happened. And so we know that COVID is not our fault but COVID is here, and despite that, during the entire COVID period, our teachers have been working. As a matter of fact up to this morning, our teachers submitted all of their work, submitted packages, submitted work online so their students got work today."
And Smith also further emphasized that their fight is not a selfish one - it's not just about the salary cuts but corruption within the government on a whole. And because of this, they feel they have the people's support.
Elena Smith, President, BNTU
"We are saying this time, as we have done before, that this is not just about the ten, this is about our country, so the ten is on the table, the ten is important to us, but good governance is also important to us because if we had that we wouldn't be where we are today. So if we don't get that sorted out we will be here next year, three years from now, five years from now, ten years from now, and we want to ensure that our fight, that we are doing better for our country, to put our country in a better position than it is right now."
"A lot of the people out there have said that they support us because they know we have been out there championing this cause of good governance and so despite the fact that they might not support us in other things, they support us for that position that we have taken and always taken."
So what would it take for the strike to come to an end? President Smith says the government needs to come back to the negotiation table with good intentions - and proof of them.
Elena Smith, President, BNTU
"Tell them come to the table, bring some concrete solutions to the issues we are having right now, come to us seriously, bring the draft to us and then we can talk."
Opposition members joined in on today's protest - former UDP councilor candidate, Shane Williams, Port Loyola Standard Bearer, Philip Willoughby, former mace bearer Brian "Yellowman" Audinett and even the former UDP mayoral candidate, Orson Picart.
Following the meeting, the BNTU met to discuss further action that they would be taking throughout the rest of the week.
