Warrington: Bins go unemptied during two-week strike

Bins across Warrington will not be emptied for the duration of the strike, the council says

Bins will not be collected in a town for the duration of a two-week strike as refuse collectors walk out in a row over pay.

Members of the Unite union at Warrington Council are taking industrial action until 16 October.

The union said workers would not accept a "real terms pay cut" when they already struggled to make ends meet.

The authority apologised to residents and said it was willing to listen to staff's concerns.

It had previously said it expected a "small level of disruption" from the action, which it said related to national negotiations over pay.

'Flatten waste'

The council added: "We must acknowledge that the ongoing dispute with one of our recognised Trade Unions is related to negotiations which are held nationally and is not about local conditions in Warrington."

More than 50 workers in Warrington have rejected the national pay offer.

However, Unite claimed that the national bargaining agreement for local government sets out minimum standards but local authorities could agree better terms and conditions if they wanted to.

Regional officer, Brian Troake said: "Our members have suffered a 25 per cent cut to their wages in real terms over the last 13 years.

"Warrington Council's leadership team need to stop hiding behind the national pay negotiations and meet with Unite to resolve this dispute."

The council has advised residents to flatten waste before putting it in the bin, share bin space with neighbours and to take waste to community recycling centres in Woolston, Gatewarth and Sandy Lane.

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