Bin strikes have piled up across the country
Weeks of bin strikes in Sandwell have caused a commotion which reached Parliament last week, as Shaun Bailey MP brought the industrial dispute to the attention of the House of Commons.
The MP for West Bromwich West raised the issue on Wednesday by launching a furious attack on Labour who he told to, ‘grow a spine and put people before your paymasters’. Rishi Sunak then seized the opportunity to push for his Minimum Service Levels Bill, accusing the Labour party of being ‘unable to stand up to its union paymasters’.
Bailey claimed GMB union blocked ambulance workers getting to the depot, which GMB representative Martin Allen vehemently denied as the MP was accused of being ‘economical with the truth’.
Choosing to direct his fury on to the GMB union and opposition party, Bailey failed to mention the company responsible for causing the dispute in the first place.
Refuse workers in Sandwell working for the outsourcing giant Serco have been on strike for over 3-weeks after being dealt a real-terms pay cut by their employer.
Over 96% of members supported taking strike action, as GMB organiser Justine Jones blamed ‘Serco’s greed’ and said the company had ‘failed to recognise and properly value the work of refuse workers across the borough’.
In 2010 the council outsourced waste and refuse collection to Serco in a contract which has since been slated by an external auditor report which cited ineffective relations between senior officers and a decline in service delivery.
According to GMB, the company’s 25-year contract with the council is worth about £650 million, with union representatives commenting that they are a ‘massive company with massive profits’.
Due to the pile up of rubbish in June, the local fire service issued six safety measures to ensure people stayed safe in the borough. Whilst Sandwell council has urged Serco ‘to work with its employees and the trade unions to find a resolution to the dispute’.
In the third week of strikes, GMB called for urgent action and talks with Council leadership following a refusal from Serco to negotiate as residents saw their waste pile up.
Residents will be relieved as the bin strikes were temporarily suspended last week when the union said members had in principle accepted a 8.5% pay rise, calling of the strikes set this week.
Serco has been involved in a number of union disputes over the years, including last year in Bexley where outsourced Serco workers faced the worst comparable pay rates in London. The dispute ended in a victory for the union and an 11% pay rise.
Commenting on the strikes, Justine Jones said: “Taking strike action is always a last resort, but all our members are asking for is a pay packet that lets them raise a family and pay the bills.
“In reality Serco are proposing a real terms pay cut in the midst of the worst cost of living crisis in a generation, all whilst posting eye watering profits as a company. It’s unrealistic to expect working people to accept that.”
She added that support from local Sandwell residents had been ‘overwhelming’, stating they ‘know their local refuse workers aren’t the ones to blame for this disruption’.
Bin strikes pile on across country
Unite the union are currently engaged in five industrial disputes involving refuse collection workers. This includes two active strikes in Somerset and South Gloucestershire involving outsourced workers employed by the company Suez.
They will be joined this month by Bristol council refuse workers and Urbaser workers in Selby, while bin workers in Cumbria have been on an all-out strike since May.
Leicestershire is also ‘on the brink of bin chaos’ according to GMB, as refuse workers in Blaby council have entered strike action in a dispute with the council, who advised staff to use food banks if they were unable to pay their bills.
Private outsourced companies restricting pay rates to boost profits as well as councils being unwilling to pay workers a proper wage have been blamed for the rise in strike action in the sector.
Councils have been issued a warning by Unite that, unless they urgently address the low pay of refuse collection workers, they will face ongoing strike action and disruption through the year.
(Photo credit: SkyNews / Screenshot)
Hannah Davenport is trade union reporter at Left Foot Forward
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