The union explained that the pay deal which members voted in favour of will see HGV drivers paid £15.50 per hour and loaders paid £12 per hour.
GMB’s regional organiser Nicola Nixon commented that the union is “pleased to announce that this dispute has ended before it has really begun”. She continued that the settlement has been agreed “in a professional manner which means our members receive a pay rise they are happy to accept and the residents of Winchester will not see any disruption to their kerbside bin collections”.
Ms Nixon added: “If this shows us anything, it is that if an employer offers market rates, our members will accept and will continue to do their difficult, dirty and dangerous job.”
From the waste company’s perspective, a spokesperson for Biffa told letsrecycle.com: “Following constructive discussions, we’re pleased our offer has been accepted by the union and that strike action has been avoided.”
Contract
Biffa holds an eight-year contract with Winchester city council which began in February 2021. The company has also held the contract with the council previously, when Winchester and East Hampshire councils ran the service jointly, with the contract due to expire in 2019. Winchester then extended the deal by a year while it procured a new contract, which Biffa won (see letsrecycle.com story).
Winchester has an estimated population of 127,500 people and has a recycling rate of 40.6%, according to Defra statistics for the financial year 2021/22.
