Birmingham agency workers join bin strike over bullying claims

Some agency workers who have continued working during Birmingham’s long-running bin strike are joining picket lines in a separate dispute.

Industrial action started in March after members of the Unite trade union walked out in a dispute with Birmingham City Council over pay and jobs.

Agency workers have since voted to take action in a separate dispute with their employer over claims of bullying and harassment and are expected to stage a rally on Monday at the Smithfield depot.

The council said a small number of staff were involved in a dispute with the firm Job&Talent. The recruitment agency said it was committed to operating in full compliance with employment laws.

Unite said 18 out of 22 agency staff who are members had voted to strike from 1 December.

Information published by Unite claimed bin drivers employed by the agency had been subjected to the “bullying tactic” of having their driving “performances” publicly ranked in a league table posted on their staff room wall at Smithfield depot.

Last month, Unite also claimed managers had threatened agency workers with being banned from jobs, or blacklisted, if they refused to cross picket lines.

Earlier this month, a spokesman for Job&Talent said: “We prioritise the rights, welfare, and safety of our workers and maintain regular communication to ensure they feel supported.”

It added it took any allegation concerning worker welfare and safety extremely seriously, and would not “tolerate intimidation or threats against workers for exercising their rights, including participation in industrial action”.

The first dispute between Unite and Birmingham City Council saw on-off industrial action for several weeks from January, before all-out strikes started on 11 March.

The original dispute followed the scrapping of a waste collection and recycling officer role, which Unite said would see affected workers lose up to £8,000 a year. The council said a “fair and reasonable offer” had been made.

Strikes led to rubbish piling up, with uncollected waste several feet high in some streets in the first few months, amid complaints of rats, foxes and seagulls tearing open plastic bags.

This month, the council said it had been collecting an average of approximately 1,330 tonnes of kerbside waste every day, more than it did prior to industrial action, and over the past six months had collected more than 100,000 tonnes of kerbside waste.