Overview
- Birmingham City Council halted all waste collections on Monday, citing expected mass pickets after Job & Talent agency staff joined striking council bin workers.
- Unite says agency workers voted to strike over bullying, harassment and a blacklisting threat, while the council calls the allegations unfounded and says its probe found no blacklisting.
- Job & Talent told workers the service was suspended for the day and confirmed they would receive their usual pay, with staff instructed to return on Tuesday.
- The council says collections will resume Tuesday with a goal to clear backlogs by Sunday, adding it has contingency plans to ensure at least one weekly pickup and has recently collected about 1,330 tonnes daily.
- Pickets formed at the Smithfield, Atlas and Perry Barr depots, with around 200 people at Smithfield and roughly 40 agency workers joining, as Unite pressed for renewed talks.