But that doesn't mean the strike will end – and for fourth formers this dramatically affects their chances of completing their final year of high school. These are the students who are focusing on their final exams, as well as their SBA's and other preparations for their CXC's exams. It's the final lap, but without teachers, the students are stuck.
But regardless, BNTU president Elena Smith explained that teachers have worked tirelessly – especially over the past year – and it is their right to strike despite the consequences.
Jules Vasquez "While you are doing this, children are suffering and you know this as a teacher, fourth form students are losing our critically, they cannot complete their course work and their finishing high school. In the interest of kids who you all have dedicated your life's work to, shouldn't you just say man, let's go back and maintain the pressure some other way? But these kids need you all in the classroom, they lost so much due to distance learning due to COVID and now their losing more."
Hon. Elena Smith - President, BNTU "Jules, you work for government now?"
Jules Vasquez "Not at all, I sound like an apologist."
Hon. Elena Smith "You sound like you're trying to convince we."
Jules Vasquez "But I'm saying it in the kid's interest's senator."
Hon. Elena Smith "Our teachers have always had our children's best interest at heart, sometimes more than the other persons who are complaining right now. We have done so much for our students, we continue to do so, even during COVID, our teachers went above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that our children are getting classes, their packages, they are getting these things out of our own pockets a lot of the time because the schools complain they didn't have money to print packages, the ministry was only giving them 5 dollars per child but fair is fair, we have always done our share but it is always thrown on us the children, the poor children."
Jules Vasquez "But it's real, the fourth farmers can't finish their course work Elena."
Hon. Elena Smith "Jules, despite COVID and despite not having face to face classes, our teachers have been giving those students classes, you cannot say that is not so. They have been getting their online classes."
Jules Vasquez "You know it is not the same, you're an experienced teacher. COVID created that but if you see them suffering already one year with COVID, these kids are plugging out, we're losing a generation to crime."
Hon. Elena Smith "Listen, how many of the schools have made the decision that, listen, we will remain online and we will not go face to face despite the fact that we can apply and we can get approval for that. So how will you blame me for the position that my management say we will not do face to face, we will continue doing packages? So, our teachers have been doing that up to the point in which we began strike, classes are going on."
Jules Vasquez "Those teachers who are striking which is not the majority senator."
Hon. Elena Smith "We know our rights and we have that right as well as unions, so you can't fault us for using the rights that we have."
The BNTU will be going into their fourth week of strike – their longest in Belize's history.
