Birmingham bin strike to continue as workers 'overwhelmingly' reject deal

A strike by bin workers in Birmingham is set to continue after the latest pay offer by the city council was "overwhelmingly" rejected.

It follows a month-long stand-off between members of the Unite union and the Labour-run authority as bin bags and fly-tipped rubbish have piled high on streets.

Unite said the city council's "partial" offer was "totally inadequate" did not address the potential pay cuts for 200 drivers.

The council has previously said the offer on the table was a fair one.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "The rejection of the offer is no surprise as these workers simply cannot afford to take pay cuts of this magnitude to pay the price for bad decision after bad decision."

The dispute centres around the council's decision to remove Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) roles.

The union argued that the role brought safety expertise to an "often dirty and dangerous job", and said about 170 affected workers faced losing up to £8,000 annually due to the decision.

Birmingham City Council, which disputes both the number of staff affected and the sums of money quoted by the union, said the WRCO role was not industry standard, and did not exist in other councils.

At the end of March, the council declared a major incident, saying that some 17,000 tonnes of rubbish was lining the city's streets.

Some residents have also reported an increase in rats and other vermin.

In recent days, military planners have been called in to help deal with the situation.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said that was not about "boots on the ground" but it would help get waste cleared.

Other neighbouring authorities have also stepped in to help clear rubbish.

"We've got over two-thirds of the rubbish cleared off the streets now, this week we'll start to see cleaning up the pavements and streets as well as the clearance of all of that rubbish, I'm very pleased about that," Rayner said.

"The kids are off school - obviously it's Easter holidays, we want that rubbish cleared."