South Gloucestershire bin workers to strike until September

Waste collectors in South Gloucestershire say they plan to strike every day until September unless they get a better pay rise.

The Unite union said about 150 Suez workers would begin "indefinite" strike action over a "pay cut" by a company making "tens of millions" of pounds.

The workers began striking earlier this month after rejecting an 8% pay offer.

Suez said it is making plans to cover the proposed strike action over the summer.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said workers were on "very low wages even though the work they do is heavy, difficult and dirty".

She added: "[Suez] is a highly profitable company making tens of millions and can afford to give its struggling staff a reasonable wage increase."

A spokesperson for SUEZ said the 8% pay increase for 2023, combined with the similar pay increase agreed in 2022, delivers pay increases of 15 to 16.75% over two years.

"This was rejected by Unite the trade union, who are seeking a 15% increase for 2023 alone, which would deliver pay increases in excess of 22% over two years," they added.

Unite said Suez brought in profits of £80.8m in 2021, while its South Gloucestershire bin loaders earn £11.53 per hour.

Members said they decided to intensify industrial action after both Suez and South Gloucestershire Council ignored repeated requests to engage in talks.

The Suez spokesperson added that industrial action was "the very last outcome" they wanted to see.

"Our door is still open and we welcome further discussions with Unite," they said.

They added that just over 40% of their workers in South Gloucestershire were continuing to work throughout the strike period and the company will provide a limited collection service that prioritises collecting black bin waste and opening the larger Sort It centres.

South Gloucestershire Council said it is not involved in the negotiations as they are between contractor Suez and its employees, but it is doing all it can to "minimise the impact".

"We are working with the staff Suez has available to provide the best level of service possible under the circumstances," a spokesperson said.

"We hope that constructive talks between Suez and its staff will help to reach a swift resolution to this matter and thank residents for their patience and understanding."

The refuse workers took strike action from 12 until 18 June and they walked out again earlier this week.

They now plan to continue striking every day until 3 September.

Unite's regional officer Ken Fish said: "Our members don't want to strike, but their determination to ensure a fair pay deal is rock solid.

"Industrial action will continue until Suez puts an acceptable offer to our members."

The Suez spokesperson added: "We'd like to apologise to our residents in South Gloucestershire for the disruption from the strike action and thank them for their patience."

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