BTL Board to Decide on Severance Claims Amid Ongoing Union Protest

Belize Telemedia Limited (BTL) says its Board of Directors is expected to meet on or before February nineteenth, twenty-twenty-six, to make a final decision regarding severance claims owed to former employees, an issue that has triggered nearly two weeks of protest outside the company’s headquarters on St. Thomas Street in Belize City.  In a correspondence sent by BTL’s internal legal counsel, the company indicated that once a decision is reached, representatives of the Belize Communications Workers Union (BCWJ) will be formally updated, and a meeting can then be arranged between both parties.  The protest stems from a long-standing dispute over severance payments owed to past employees whose employment ended more than six years ago. The Caribbean Court of Justice previously ruled that BTL is required to pay severance; however, union representatives contend the company has only made moves to compensate the specific claimants involved in the CCJ litigation rather than the full group of former workers who are owed benefits.  BTL’s pending board meeting is now being viewed as a critical turning point that could determine whether the dispute moves toward resolution or further industrial action.