Industrial action threatens bin collections

Bin collections and street cleaning could be suspended if union members at a council contractor vote in favour of strike action.

Members of the GMB union at Urbaser are in dispute over wages and sick pay. The company currently has no sick pay scheme, with workers having to rely on government Statutory Sick Pay of £109.40 a week.

Urbaser provide street cleaning and refuse collection services for both North Herts Council and East Herts Council.

Michael Dooley, of the GMB, said: "Our members keep the local environment clean. They are undertaking heavy, dirty work in all weathers, 52 weeks of the year.

"Urbaser are refusing to give one single penny of company sick pay to workers who fall ill, leaving sick people to rely on paltry statutory sick pay.

"Urbaser are a multimillion-pound international company, but unlike other refuse contractors such as Biffa, Veolia and Serco who have company sick pay schemes, Urbaser leave their sick staff to rely solely on the government hand out. We say that it is only reasonable that Urbaser should introduce a company sick pay scheme."

A joint statement from East and North Herts district councils said: "Urbaser has notified us that GMB union members at their Letchworth and Buntingford depots have plans to undertake a strike ballot next month.

"In the event of a strike, we will work with Urbaser to minimise disruption to residents and ensure any affected residents are kept up to date.

"We are unable to comment further as we have no involvement in pay negotiation conversations between Urbaser and GMB."

Tim Guile, regional operations manager at Urbaser, said: "The union is requesting a significant pay increase at a rate we believe is not aligned with the standard pay rates in the surrounding areas.

"We have made an offer that we consider to be a reasonable and fair offer, reflecting both the value we place on our workforce and the economic landscape of our region.

"We are eager to continue constructive discussions with the GMB Union in hopes of resolving this matter amicably and promptly.

"In the interim, we wish to assure residents that we are committed to ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of front-line services in the event of a strike."

Urbaser recently settled a dispite with workers in Welwyn and Hatfield after they accepted a 13.5% wage increase.