Unite’s national lead officer has called for Birmingham’s council leader to quit his post over the authority’s “abhorrent” and “shambolic” handling of the city’s bin strike.
Onay Kasab visited a picket line in the Tyseley area of the city on Thursday to speak to dozens of the hundreds of workers who went on all-out strike four months ago over fears some could face pay cuts of up to £8,000.
Birmingham City Council leader John Cotton said in a statement issued on Wednesday that the council had “sought to be reasonable and flexible, but we have reached the absolute limit of what we can offer”.
Mr Cotton added that the authority had “now run out of time” after negotiating in good faith “but unfortunately Unite has rejected all offers so we must now press ahead to both address our equal pay risk and make much needed improvements to the waste service”.
The Labour-run council would communicate with staff and trade unions as to its next steps, with voluntary redundancy remaining on the table alongside opportunities for training and redeployment, Mr Cotton said.
Speaking after meeting Unite members on the picket line outside a city council depot, Mr Kasab stressed that the dispute was about planned cuts to pay and not about workers looking for better pay and conditions.
Mr Kasab said: “The council’s announcement effectively means that they are looking at fire and rehire and that’s one of the most abhorrent of employment practices.
“We were told previously that under a Labour government that that would be outlawed.
“We have now got a Labour government that said it would be outlawed and a Labour council who are now looking at implementing fire and rehire to bully these workers for the council to get its way, which is about cutting people’s pay.
“That’s absolutely appalling.”
Accusing the council of being dishonest by not referring to fire and rehire in its “unhelpful” statement, the trade union official added that workers were determined to stay out on strike “not just as a point of principle, not just because we have been out on strike for all this time already, but because what the council are looking to do simply cannot happen”.
The only way to resolve the dispute was through negotiation, said Mr Kasab, who claimed the council’s statement gave false impression that there had been “offer after offer” to settle the issues.
“The question to the council is how do redundancies and cuts to people’s pay improve services,” Mr Kasab continued.
“And that’s the question that John Cotton really has to answer now.”
Accusing the council of a “shambolic” mishandling of the dispute, including a “daft” attempt to negotiate via a statement to the media, Mr Kasab said of Mr Cotton: “I think he really has to seriously consider his position.
“The way his council under his leadership has mishandled this dispute and with yesterday’s appalling announcement, as a Labour councillor he really needs to be considering his position.”
Responding to Mr Kasab’s comments, a spokesperson for Birmingham City Council said: “The Government have been very clear on fire and rehire, introducing some of the toughest restrictions in the world, and the council leader supports their stance.
“Unite rejected the council’s fair and reasonable offer and voluntary redundancy remains on the table, as do opportunities for training and redeployment across the council. We will be communicating with our staff and trade unions as to next steps.”
“We absolutely have to have fair and equitable pay across the council, so that the council isn’t plunged into another equal pay crisis.”
