On Saturday, BTL issued a press release responding to the retirees who are demanding their severance - and now make up the Belize Communication Workers for Justice.
They say that they will continue to review the matter concerning the BCWJ and the non-members whose employment falls outside the 6 year limitation period.
But this answer isn't satisfactory for the BCWJ. This morning on Sunup on 7, they stated that they will continue to protest, they will engage other unions, and they will discuss their options for taking their matter to international courts.
It's reminiscent of the 2005 protest in front of BTL when, at the time, Paul Perriot was a part of the Communication Workers Union. He has since gone on to live in the US but came home for a visit to agitate alongside his former colleagues in the BCWJ. This morning, we asked him for his thoughts on the fact that the current union members of the Communication Workers Union - which he once led - haven't made a stand.
Paul Perriot, Belize Communications Workers for Justice
"You guys might not remember but way back in 1999 when I started working, 2000, we had a union executive that was representing us and we had to agitate strongly to move that executive because we feel like they got into a position where they kinda started to bow down to the management of the company. They started to accept changes that weren't in tune with the membership of the union so it's a huge thing. So it's not just now, Emily and the executive, after I left, also had to do some of those things. So unionism is agitation and agitation via the laws of Belize to get what workers should per law get. So it's huge."
"We were on the ground, we worked at BTL at the time, now we're outside. But I want to talk to, for me, collectively, speak to the other unions, the other union members, even the union members within our work force. You don't have to move based on your leadership because we moved back then against our leadership so we got out there and we represented ourselves because we're Belizeans and we're workers so we feel what is happening. We're in the comfort, like what Emily said, but we feel what is happening to the rest of our country, we have to get in, so we talk to workers in general, we talk to unions, but not only unions, because people also work that are not union members, but they're also feeling it."
The group plans to protest later this week.
