Christian Workers Union wins its arbitration case against the Central Bank

The Christian Workers Union (CWU) has won an arbitration case against the Central Bank of Belize over the dismissal of a senior clerk in 2025.  The Essential Services Arbitration Tribunal ruled at the end of August that the employee’s dismissal was unfair, disproportionate and in breach of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Bank and the Union.  The employee, identified as Bowen, was dismissed over a WhatsApp status that Central Bank officials interpreted as threatening.  The Tribunal found that the Bank failed to provide Bowen with the written notice and two-day response period required under Article Seven of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Instead, she was reportedly called into an unscheduled meeting on June 11, 2025, and suspended that same day.  The panel, chaired by attorney Wayne Piper, also found that the Central Bank improperly relied on the Labour Act’s provision for summary dismissal instead of following the disciplinary process established under the Collective Bargaining Agreement.  According to the Tribunal, this bypassed the disciplinary and dismissal procedures agreed upon by the Bank and the Union.  The Tribunal also concluded that the Bank’s investigation was not genuine and that a finding of guilt had effectively been reached before the inquiry began. It further rejected the Bank’s claim that the employee’s actions amounted to gross misconduct, saying the evidence did not support that conclusion.  CWU President Leonora Flowers says the Union is satisfied with the outcome and believes the ruling reinforces the importance of employers respecting agreed disciplinary procedures.

Leonora Flowers, President, Christian Workers Union: “It was a long journey to get to the end and a lot of pro bono work went into it. We didn’t have attorneys on our side. We had to rely on a lot of meetings and assistance pro bono, all the way pro bono, but we relied on people who knew the law and who believed in what we were saying. You cannot sign a CBA and then decide to set it aside when you feel like you can set it aside. We signed our CBA and we rely on every article that’s in there to protect and preserve the rights of our members and that’s all we will continue to do. We will negotiate every step of the way. There were many times when we asked the employer, we think you’re overstepping, we think you’re wrong, we want to negotiate this and we were told no. So at the end of the day, we were very happy that justice was served and the law will out in this case. What we’re going to be doing now is to seek to have the award paid. Seek to have the members award paid and there is still another matter that we’re going to be looking into but we’ll give it everything we can and we will ensure that justice is done.”

The Union did not specifically request that Bowen be reinstated and instead left the remedy to the Tribunal.  After determining that the employment relationship had broken down, the panel awarded Bowen twenty-six thousand, nine hundred and ninety-eight dollars and fifty cents in compensation.  The award represents nine months of lost earnings, minus the notice payment she had already received.