Sheffield bin crews set to strike over pay and conditions

Union leaders say the below inflation offer amounts to "a real terms pay cut"

Bin workers in Sheffield have voted to take strike action in a dispute over pay and conditions, a union has said.

Over 80% of members at Veolia Sheffield voted in favour of industrial action in response to a below inflation pay offer, according to the GMB.

Union leaders said members also faced "ongoing attacks to their terms and conditions".

A spokesperson for Veolia said it was continuing an "ongoing dialogue" with the GMB in a bid to resolve the issue.

'Real terms cut'

Lee Parkinson, GMB organiser, said: "Members working at Veolia have taken huge risks working all throughout the pandemic to help keep Sheffield moving - dealing with record amounts of waste as people work from home.

"It's time to value them properly for the work they do."

Mr Parkinson said the pay offer was an "insult" and amounted to "a real terms pay cut".

He said GMB members were seeking an offer "that at least keeps pace with their increasing cost of living and is not paid for with cuts to other terms and conditions".

According to the GMB, the strike action - set to take place on 1 November between 06:30 and 10:30 - could affect over 200,000 homes in Sheffield. Further dates were planned for November and beyond, the union added.

'Huge contribution'

A Veolia spokesperson said: "Despite recent wage negotiations, we have received a notice of collective action from the GMB union.

"We are working to ensure any disruption to residents' waste and recycling services is minimised.

"We will provide further information to residents next week to explain any changes to bin collections," the spokesperson added.

Councillor Paul Wood, Sheffield City Council's executive member for housing, roads and waste management, said the authority was "working closely" with Veolia to keep disruption to a minimum and residents should continue to put their bins out as normal.

"We value the huge contribution of waste collection workers and recognise the incredible efforts they have made to keep our services running throughout the pandemic, and thank residents for their patience during this time," he added.