Back in March, over 80 men and women graduated from a vocational skills and training program organized by the LIU. For the women, they developed culinary skills and were promised $1,100 worth of equipment to get them started on their path to entrepreneurship.
Well, today, four of those women came by our studio and said that up to now, they still haven't gotten that assistance. On top of that, they were unceremoniously told that they were no longer a part of the temporary work program, which included them cleaning streets in Belize City.
Now these single mothers are concerned and outraged because they say that not only were they told they might not get the help promised to them, but they now don't have any income since the little money they were making from the temporary program has stopped.
Here is what they told us today.
Arile August, Graduated Program
"My concern is that our boss Mr Usher let go like 8 girls. We were in a CYDP program where we clean the streets. Friday was our last pay day and he said we are not to come back because we graduate. Alright, we didn't get the $1,100 that they said they would give us to start our business but they already let us go. I have two kids in high school, I have rent to pay, how will I pay that?"
"This morning we went by OB and they told us that they aren't sure if we will get that money, so what are we supposed to do?"
Courtney Menzies:
"How long have you been a part of the program?"
Arile August, Graduated Program
"I've been in for three months, end of this month would be three months and you have to complete three months, but I didn't even complete three months and he already let me go."
Donna Arnold, Graduated Program
"My point is I don't like it, I have my bills to pay, I have my kids to feed, and Mr Usher should have come as a man and talk to us. I have been there over a year so I want to know what commission I have to get."
Courtney Menzies:
"And you graduated as well?"
Donna Arnold, Graduated Program
"Yes ma'am."
Courtney Menzies:
"So you're supposed to get the $1,100 too?"
Donna Arnold, Graduated Program
"Yup. Now I hear that we don't have anything to get. I need my stove, I need my refridge, I need my little electronics so I could make my pizza, whatever. Now, I don't have anything to get, so we're what? They have us like little girls, we're not little girls, we're big women with responsibilities."
Genie Petillo, Wanted To Enroll
"I don't like the idea of what Mr Usher did to us on Friday because we're all single mothers and he made Mr Williams come and tell us that we can't work again and we're not on the program again that's not necessary because all of us are single mothers and we need jobs. I have graduation right here, I have four kids, and I like to work for my own money."
"I'm just here two months and two weeks and he took me off the program, that's not fair, we haven't seen him at all."
Courtney Menzies:
"And you graduated from the program too?"
Genie Petillo, Wanted To Enroll
"No, I haven't graduated, I was just going to start graduating, I wanted to go into the program to learn how to cook and make different things and know a trade out here so I could help myself but I'm not going to school and he doesn't have me in the program. He just laid us off like that without any explanation."
Halima Flowers, Wanted To Enroll
"I got on the job and they told me that the graduates that graduated, they said they already did their course so they will leave the ones who need to get in the class. But Friday, it was like, I don't know, the thing just went haywire. This man came to talk about a list that Usher sent and said that once your name isn't called you don't come back to work on Monday so I said, it's like what? Bam, none of our names weren't called."
"They were saying that in three months' time, you would do your classes, but it didn't even reach three months, one month and I already came off?"
