Nearly two years after restructuring shook up Belize’s telecommunications sector, a long-running labor dispute over severance pay for former employees of national telecom incumbent Belize Telecommunications Limited (BTL) has moved toward resolution, with Digi — the company that acquired BTL’s core operations — confirming that more than three-quarters of affected workers have already received their owed compensation.
For months, the Belize Communication Workers for Justice (BCWJ), the union representing former BTL staff, organized public protests and held firm negotiations to secure the severance payments that workers claimed were wrongfully withheld after the company’s ownership transition. Meanwhile, a parallel dispute over severance for former employees of Belize Electricity Limited (BEL) remains unresolved, with those workers continuing public demonstrations to demand their own owed payments.
In a recent media briefing, Digi Chief Executive Officer Ivan Tesucum explained that the company has taken a low-key approach to resolving severance claims, processing payments on a rolling basis for any former worker who visits the company’s office to finalize their claim. Unlike the high-profile standoff that dominated headlines earlier in the year, tensions around the severance issue have cooled significantly in recent weeks, Tesucum said.
This de-escalation has allowed Digi to redirect its organizational focus back to its core long-term priorities: expanding service access, driving sustainable growth, and leading Belize’s ongoing digital transformation, he added. “My focus is ensuring that Digi continues to grow, that we continue with our mandate to ensure that we transform our country and continue to lead in digital transformation,” Tesucum told reporters.
When asked to confirm how many former workers had already collected and accepted their severance packages, Tesucum confirmed that the share of completed claims is currently above 75%. “And so the checks are ready. It’s a matter of them coming to collect it really. And so that, that’s where we’re at,” he said.
This report is adapted from a transcript of a broadcast evening newscast, with original commentary preserved in context.