As we've reported, General Secretary of the CWU Christine Perriot was fired yesterday, and tonight the news is that the Belize Communication Workers Union is re-organizing its industrial action strategy.
Perriot's firing had done a couple of things: firstly it has forced the Labour Department to set up an arbitration panel to deal with three employees which had been fired and for which the 21 days notice, ending on March 5 was planned for. Now the arbitration cancels that 21 day countdown, meaning that legally the union cannot strike on March fifth.
But because Perriot was terminated it gives the union ground to again serve BTL with another 21 day notice of their intention to strike. President of the BCWU Paul Perriot explains.
Paul Perriot, BCWU President
"And I believe that the general public has seen that as a blatant direct attack at union busting. It will not be something that will go unchallenged. The other unions have seen this action as disrespect and I think, as I said earlier, the general public sees it as such and there will be repercussions to that action.
The three employees, we just received a message from the Labor Department, the Labor Commissioner actually stating that he will be setting up an arbitration panel, the tribunal that we have been talking about for quite a while. So that essentially puts the 21 day notice that we had implemented with regards to the strike action with those three employees in question so we will be sending in names to the Ministry of Labor of who will be our representatives on that tribunal.
Reading from the letter it essentially states that by the company terminating the services of Christine Perriot, as general secretary, that immediately shows that BCWU and the BTL conciliation that the Labor Department was trying to garner is out the door so they have essentially said that this going to get any conciliation out of this so arbitration is the next answer so we are immediately calling arbitration now so they are not waiting for the fifth which they had the right to also do, we didn't have to wait for the fifth, they have called it effective today, that essentially calls off the strike but as you know we have the next live issue right now with the termination of Christine Perriot, our general secretary, so the union is contemplating institution another industrial action against the company.
We are in the process of doing that and that should be issued sometime today with regards to Christine Perriot's termination because we believe it goes against the collective agreement, it goes against the Trade Union Act Chapter 304 with regards to Trade union rights and representative's rights. So we will be instituting another twenty one days notice against the company."
The union through its president is now filing a grievance before the executive committee of BTL. They are asking for the immediate re-instatement of Christine Perriot. Failing that they have the option to again call for a strike. Meanwhile the go-slow and work to rule remain in effect.
