The situation in Birmingham during the bin strike “cannot continue”, the city council’s leader has said as he urged the Unite union to help bring the industrial action to an end ahead of a fresh round of talks on Wednesday.
John Cotton has asked Unite to “come back to the table” and bring an end to the all-out bin worker strike that has caused misery for residents since it started on March 11.
Tonnes of rubbish has been piling up in the street after hundreds of workers walked out indefinitely in protest against the council’s plans to scrap the role of waste recycling collection officer (WRCO), with residents reporting seeing “cat-sized” rats near their homes.
While 18,000 tonnes has been cleared since April 4, Mr Cotton said the only way for a normal service to resume is for the strike to come to an end, but said the cash-strapped council has “red lines” that it will not cross during negotiations.
On Monday, Unite members rejected the council’s latest offer by 97% on 60% turnout, with Unite saying the proposal did not address potential pay cuts for 200 drivers and was “totally inadequate”.
The union said if guarantees that no worker needs to lose money could be put into writing as part of a new offer, a deal would be “much closer”, but they fear that alternative job roles of the same grade being offered to affected workers could be downgraded in the coming months.
Speaking to the PA news agency at the city council’s offices ahead of more negotiations on Wednesday, Mr Cotton said: “It’s really disappointing that Unite have rejected a second reasonable offer from the council, however, our door remains open to talk, so I’m really pleased that there will be further talks taking place later today.
“Obviously, I’m not going to offer a running commentary on what happens in those negotiations but what I will say is what we cannot accept is anything that results in crossing our red lines around our equal pay liability, or indeed imperilling the transformation of the waste service.
“These are really important things that need to happen for the benefit of the citizens of Birmingham, but we’re absolutely open to negotiations and bringing this dispute to a close which has gone on, frankly, for far too long.”
The council leader said he is confident the majority of the mountains of waste left on the streets can be cleared by the end of this week, with crews currently getting rid of 1,500 tonnes of rubbish a day.
He said: “That’s a combination of being able to get the crews out in our trucks to clear some of the rubbish, additional street cleaning we put in place, and also the extended hours that we’ve got at our tips, which enables residents to drop waste directly.
“We’re confident that we can clear that backlog. We then focus on ensuring that we return to the normal collection rota.
“So over the course of this week, residents of the city should be seeing their bins being emptied on the day that they would normally expect it to be collected as the service returns to normal.”
Birmingham has a “positive future ahead” once the bin strike ends, Mr Cotton said, as he urged Unite to engage in “reasonable discussion” to bring them to a close.
He said: “We need to bring this dispute to a close because this has been a serious issue for the city, and what I really want to be able to talk about is the positive story that we can tell about Birmingham, the record levels of investment that are coming in, the jobs and opportunities that have been created for Brummies across the city.
“That’s what we need to be talking about, which is why it’s so important that we bring the dispute to a close and that we continue with the work to remove that accumulated waste from the streets of the city.
“We’ve got a positive future ahead of us if we do those things, and that’s what I’m absolutely focused on delivering that as leader of this council.”
He added: “Come back to the table, let’s engage in a reasonable discussion over what I believe is a fair and reasonable offer that’s on the table.
“It’s in everyone’s interest now – the citizens of Birmingham and the workforce themselves – to find a way forward that works for everybody.
“We cannot continue with the situation that we’ve seen in the city but we do need to ensure that we’re delivering a waste service that delivers for every part of the communities of Birmingham and delivers in a way that they need and deserve.”
Unite maintains that WRCOs face a pay cut of £8,000, with the city council saying no worker needs to lose money from their salary if they move into alternative roles of the same grade which are being offered.
The union’s general secretary Sharon Graham said: “If the council puts in writing what it says in public then we would likely be much closer to a deal.
“If John Cotton is being honest that no worker needs to lose income, the deal put forward by Unite should be accepted. Three very simple solutions focused on WRCOs and drivers not being forced to take £8,000 pay cuts.
“How can anyone be asked to lose a quarter of pay? These workers have mortgages, rent and food bills to pay. I see councillors’ expenses and council tax all go up, while wages and community services go down.
“I stand ready to meet John Cotton and indeed Angela Rayner anytime over Easter. Rather than walking through rubbish with high vizzes on, let’s get this issue dealt with for workers and the community of Birmingham.”
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