An end to the long-running Birmingham bin strike is “within sight” after a breakthrough in the bitter dispute over jobs and pay, the city council leader has said.
Breakthrough in Negotiations
Council leader John Cotton said he believed a new offer could be made to the Unite union, whose members have been on all-out strike for more than a year. The dispute flared over council plans to remove a role in its waste recycling and collection service, which it insisted was necessary to make improvements and bring the service in line with other local authorities.
Unite said the move would lead to pay cuts of around £8,000 for hundreds of its members, a figure the council has always disputed. Rubbish piled up on Birmingham’s streets, leading to residents complaining about it being a health hazard.
Council Leader's Statement
Mr Cotton said: “After months of frustration and delay, for the first time in over 12 months, a negotiated settlement to end the bin strike is now within sight. This has been a challenging and complex process, but after months of hard work, on the principles and parameters of a deal, I believe a new, improved offer can be made and terms can be put in place that addresses the ballpark issues discussed at Acas, that Unite members can agree in order to end the strike once and for all.”
He added: “A deal that would be good for the workforce, represent good value for money and would not repeat the mistakes of the past and risk creating new structural equal pay liabilities. I want our workforce to be able to return to work and help us deliver the quality refuse and recycling services the people of this city deserve.”
Political Context
The breakthrough was announced just over a week before the local council elections. No details were given about the deal. Mr Cotton said: “Whilst the pre-election period prevents the council from making a final decision prior to May 7, a re-elected Labour administration under my leadership will work to get this deal approved as a matter of absolute priority.”
Union Reaction
Unite said the council statement was a vindication of the bin workers’ struggle for a decent deal after their job evaluation regrading. “It is an absolute abhorrence that this deal has been blocked not just once but twice by unelected unaccountable commissioners and officers at Birmingham City Council, who enjoy eye-watering pay packets and no consequence for their actions,” the union said in a statement.
Unite said negotiations had taken place over the last few months to get the original Acas deal back on track, facilitated by Lord Brendan Barber. The roles played by West Midlands mayor Richard Parker and Lord Barber should be recognised as they very quickly saw that the deal was both reasonable and doable.
Details of the Proposed Deal
Unite said the full details of the deal will remain confidential, awaiting the detailed offer from the council, and it will have to be voted on by the bin workers. The broad outline of the ballpark deal, said Unite, included:
- Workers receiving a minimum of two years “cushion” from the impact of the job evaluation process, rather than six months.
- Striking agency workers with at least 12 months of employment on the contract will be offered a path to permanent employment.
- Disciplinary issues will be quashed and gross misconduct issues reviewed.
- For pension purposes the dispute will be treated as authorised absence.
- Legal action on both sides will be ended.
There will now be a series of meetings to complete the offer and the union warned it will escalate the dispute if it is reneged on in any way.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “The move made today by the leader of the council is a vindication of the bin workers’ struggle for a decent deal. Over the last few months, there have been intense negotiations to get the blocked ‘ballpark’ deal back on the table, so that our members could vote on it. The reason why we are not yet at that stage is purely down to the vindictive interference of the Government-backed commissioners who have attempted to block the deal again and clearly overstepped their remit.”
