Angela Rayner has been suspended by Unite over her stance on the Birmingham bin strike after members accused her of backing a council that had “peddled lies” and smeared its workers.
The union’s policy conference in Brighton voted on Friday to censure the Deputy Prime Minister, while also condemning the Labour-run Birmingham City Council over its handling of the dispute.
Delegates also backed a motion to review Unite’s relationship with the Labour Party — a move that could lead to a formal break with one of its biggest financial backers and trigger a funding crisis for Sir Keir Starmer.
Unite said the vote to suspend Ms Rayner passed “overwhelmingly”. Several Labour councillors, including Birmingham council leader John Cotton, have also had their union memberships suspended.
The dispute centres on bin workers who are striking over what they claim are pay cuts of up to £8,000. The council has been accused of using “fire and rehire” tactics to impose new contracts and keep wages down.
Ms Rayner, a former UNISON rep, has urged workers to accept a pay deal offered by the council in order to end the “misery and disruption” affecting Birmingham residents.
But Unite’s general secretary Sharon Graham accused her of siding with “a rogue council” and failing to support workers.
“Unite is crystal clear it will call out bad employers regardless of the colour of their rosette,” she said.
“Angela Rayner has had every opportunity to intervene and resolve this dispute but has instead backed a rogue council that has peddled lies and smeared its workers fighting huge pay cuts.
“The disgraceful actions of the Government and a so-called Labour council is essentially fire and rehire and makes a joke of the Employment Relations Act promises.
“People up and down the country are asking whose side is the Labour government on and coming up with the answer — not workers.”
Labour has not yet responded publicly to the decision.
