Bin collectors threaten to strike after pay dispute lowers employee motivation

Date: 06/01/2011

Employee motivation at Birmingham City Council has dipped as a row over pay has resulted in threatened strike action.

The council's bin collectors have voted to strike for two days on January 13th and 14th, in disagreements over equal pay for men and women.

The council has previously introduced a scheme worth about £4,000 which aimed to equalise gender pay, but last year a court ruled that this action was "not equally proofed", and the council is being forced to remove the enhancement.

GMB and Unite unions have accused the council of ignoring its advice when it made the initial decision.

The unions also said that the council has "escalated the current dispute" by threatening to only pay collectors for the amount of rubbish they collect, not for their contracted hours.

Snow and icy conditions before Christmas threw rubbish collections into chaos, creating a backlog of up to a month's worth of recycling and waste.

This week government ministers offered guidance and incentives to town halls and councils to help clear the backlog in the next couple of months.

Posted by Jo Morgan

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