Council loses High Court action over bin strikes

Rubbish on the streets of Warrington

Warrington Borough Council said it has lost High Court legal action against a union over strikes impacting bin collections in the town.

The council had applied to the High Court in London for an interim injunction to stop the long-running industrial action by refuse workers who belong to the Unite union, but said this had not been granted.

Unite regional officer Brian Troake said the union and its members had been “vindicated” by the decision.

The strike action, which began on 3 October and has seen a series of walkouts leaving some residents without a collection for a number of weeks, could now take place until Christmas Eve.

In a statement, the council said it had believed it had “a strong case and good prospect of a positive outcome”.

It added that it would continue to consider legal options, including whether to appeal against the decision.

Unite criticised the council for taking legal action, describing it as a “massive waste of taxpayers’ money”.

The union had previously said a pay offer agreed nationally was not enough and some of its members were "living hand to mouth" while some were reliant on food banks.

Some people have not had their bins collected in a number of weeks

Unite members are taking part in their fourth round of industrial action.

Staff previously walked out between 3 and 16 October, 24 October and 6 November, and 8 and 20 November.

The current walkout began on 21 November and is due to end on 4 December.

Unite said staff would also walk out from 5 December until Christmas Eve, and that further action would be scheduled if the dispute was not resolved.