Refuse workers in Birmingham have voted to reject a ‘totally inadequate’ offer from the city council aimed at ending a long-running strike over pay, union Unite said.
The action, which began on March 11, has seen thousands of tonnes of rubbish go uncollected and warnings issued of a public health emergency.
Unite said the deal would have included ‘substantial’ pay cuts for workers and did not address potential pay cuts for 200 drivers.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘For weeks, these workers have faced attacks from government and their employer pushing the lie that only a handful of workers are affected by the council’s plans to cut pay by up to £8,000.
‘Instead of peddling untruths about these low paid workers and focusing on winning a media war, the government should have taken the time to check facts and used its office to bring the council to the table in a meaningful way.
‘The rejection of the offer is no surprise as these workers simply cannot afford to take pay cuts of this magnitude to pay the price for bad decision after bad decision.’
General Secretary of Unite Union Sharon Graham (pictured last year) said the deal did not address potential pay cuts for 200 drivers
Refuse workers in Birmingham have voted overwhelmingly to reject a deal aimed at ending a long-running strike, Unite announced on Monday
Piles of uncollected rubbish fill the streets in the Balsall Heath area of Birmingham
Ms Graham added: ‘From the start, the council has constantly moved the goalposts for these workers, prolonging the strikes in the process. First it was equal pay, then it was about improving the waste service, then cost cutting. The list goes on.
‘Unite has set out simple and reasonable steps to the council to resolve these issues. It is important to remember that this dispute is not about a pay rise it is about preventing serious pay cuts.
‘The government must now call a meeting with the stakeholders to ensure these steps are taken to bring the strike to an end.
‘The government must now also urgently consider Unite’s proposal for debt restructure at Birmingham City Council and other local authorities. Workers and communities cannot continue to pay the price.’
The dispute centres around the council’s decision to get rid of Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) roles.
Previously each Birmingham bin truck was dispatched with a four-person crew which included a driver paid up to £40,476, two loaders paid up to £25,992 and one waste recycling and collection officer (WRCO) whose job included dealing with live incidents, liaising with residents, carrying out street audits and alerting flytipping and was paid up to £32,654 a year.
Unite say the decision to get rid of the WRCO role means there is no progression route for loaders and workers affected will lose thousands in pay.
The council argues that no one will be forced to take any pay cut because of the offer of alternatives, but even if a worker wished to remain on the trucks as a loader, they have been offered temporary pay protection and a compensation payment.
The union argued that the role brought safety expertise to an ‘often dirty and dangerous job’, and said about 170 affected workers faced losing up to £8,000 annually due to the decision.
Birmingham City Council said the WRCO role was not industry standard, and did not exist in other councils.
Army logistics are helping to tackle the rubbish piling up on Birmingham’s streets but there are ‘no boots on the ground’, Angela Rayner has said.
Speaking from Scunthorpe, the Deputy Prime Minister said: ‘There’s no boots on the ground, let me be very clear, we’ve deployed a couple of army logistics to help with the logistical operation of clearing up the rubbish.
‘We’ve got over two-thirds of the rubbish cleared off the streets now, this week we’ll start to see cleaning up the pavements and streets as well as the clearance of all of that rubbish, I’m very pleased about that. The kids are off school, obviously it’s Easter holidays, we want that rubbish cleared.’
Asked if taxpayers would have to foot the bill, Ms Rayner said ‘this all stems from equal pay liabilities’, adding: ‘We’ll continue to work with the council to bring down the costs and the liabilities they had with equal pay, which is part of this process, and make sure that the workers are treated fairly as part of that process.’