Birmingham Council apologises over waste dispute accusations

The long-running feud between Birmingham City Council and the unions of its refuse workers has come to an end.

The BCC has agreed a statement in which is concedes that it incorrectly stated that union Unite had declared that it was willing to take industrial action, even if it was judged unlawful.

The dispute started in 2017 after refuse workers went on strike over planned redundancies. The three-month strike cost the BCC a reported £6m.

The council was later accused of paying non-striking workers, which resulted in further strikes this year.

The latest industrial action was thought to cost the council another £5.8m, including legal costs and arrangements with external companies to cover the strike period. The proposed settlement, announced in March 2019, would cost £1.78m, according to the BBC.

The council and Unite and Unison agreed a negotiated settlement. They said in a joint statement: “Birmingham City Council (BCC), Unite and Unison are pleased to confirm that all industrial action and litigation between the parties (the dispute) have been concluded by way of mutually acceptable settlement terms.

“BCC confirms that at no stage in 2017 did either Unite or Unison attempt to prevent the council from discussing any intended role changes with the GMB.

“Whilst the council maintains that any payment made to GMB refuse workers, arising from the dispute in 2017, was made in good faith and following internal and external legal advice, the council accepts that such payments had unintended consequences and is committed to working with all of the unions to ensure that a cohesive and positive working environment exists going forward.

“BCC further retracts commentary that was made in a recent Cabinet report wherein it was incorrectly said that Unite had declared a willingness to take industrial action even if a court declared the action to be unlawful. BCC apologises for this commentary.

“All parties are committed to working together to provide a waste service that the people of Birmingham can be proud of and to this end are pleased to announce that the settlement terms have seen the creation of a working group (the Joint Services Improvement Board), to include council officers, trade union representatives and councillors, to ensure future disagreements can be resolved transparently and by discussion.”