Birmingham bin collections to resume as union suspends action in jobs row
Bags of rubbish had been piling up in some parts of the city.
Bin collection will return to normal in Birmingham after progress was made in a long-running dispute involving refuse collection workers, conciliation service Acas said.
The Unite union had warned that the dispute could last until Christmas, with workers campaigning against plans to cut more than 100 waste collection jobs.
Acas said industrial action has been suspended, and that Unite and Birmingham City Council are “pleased to be recommencing industrial relations and pleased that the bin collection can resume without disruption”.
Acas said the parties had made “sufficient” progress in their talks for industrial action to be paused, with council cabinet members agreeing in principle that Grade 3 posts will be maintained, and consequently there are no redundancy steps in place.
Unite has also agreed in principle to recommend to its members work pattern changes, including consideration of a five-day working week, Acas said, with both parties agreeing that the working week should be designed to maximise service delivery.
Discussions are set to continue on how the service can be improved, with the intention of improving efficiencies in performance of the bin collection service generally, including what savings can be made.
To assist in the resolution of outstanding issues both parties will go to Acas.
Unite said the Grade 3 jobs are responsible for the safety at the rear of the refuse vehicles.
The union’s assistant general secretary, Howard Beckett, said: “We are very pleased that we have reached the stage where we can suspend the industrial action while we hold further talks about the future of the refuse service.
“I know this news will be greatly welcomed by the people of Birmingham as they look forward to their bins being collected again on a regular and seamless basis. I would like to thank them for their understanding over recent weeks.
“Unite will suspend the current round of industrial action that was due to run until 21 September to create a conducive climate for the talks to proceed smoothly. Our members will be working normally.
“I would like to pay tribute to the city council leader, Councillor John Clancy, who has worked very hard and travelled the extra mile to achieve this solution, despite the reservations of some top council officials.
“The council has addressed our members’ concerns, including the safeguarding of the Grade 3 post that is vital to the safety at the rear of the refuse vehicles. Unite also welcomes the fact that our suspended rep is now returning to work. Unite recognises – and deplores – that local government in England has suffered swingeing cuts to its funding since the Tories came to power in 2010.
“Finally, I would like to thank our members for the solidarity they have shown in defence of a decent and well-resourced refuse collection in Birmingham, and their stand against job cuts and massive cuts to their wages. We will be entering into these Acas talks in a constructive and positive fashion – and recognise that there is still much hard work to be done.”
A Birmingham City Council spokeswoman said they still have accumulations of waste due to the strike, and are therefore still in a contingency phase, adding that the council will resume regular collections as soon as it is able to.
In a statement, the council said: “The Acas statement in connection with the Waste and Refuse dispute does not represent the council’s position until these matters are considered at the council’s Special Cabinet Meeting on August 24 2017. The decision on the waste reorganisation taken by Cabinet on June 27 is still the current position of the council.”
