Minister hails “common sense” on strike threat

Local government minister Bob Neill has hailed the GMB union's decision to withdraw its threat of strike action over Veolia's alleged plan to cut pay and jobs on its council contracts as “common sense”.

But, he also reiterated the government's commitment to increase the “frequency and quality” of waste collections, despite the GMB yesterday claiming that a move away from alternate weekly collections could not be achieved at a time when councils are cutting costs without impacting on collection jobs.

 

I'm glad to see common sense has prevailed by proper dialogue

 
Bob Neill, local government minister

Mr Neill's comments came after Veolia and the GMB issued a joint statement after a meeting last week. At the meeting the waste company's chief operating officer Tom Spaul met union officials and subsequently the threat of industrial or legal action had been removed (see letsrecycle.com story).

The minister said: “This was a matter for the unions and a private sector contractor to sort out, and I'm glad to see common sense has prevailed by proper dialogue, protecting frontline services.

“The public value their bin collections, and it is important that rubbish is collected to protect public health,” he added.

Squeeze

The GMB has warned that local authority waste contractors are facing a squeeze on two sides over the next few months, with, on the one hand, councils looking to reduce their budgets by as much as 30% and, on the other, the government pursuing its support for more frequent waste collections.

The union claims alternate weekly collections are a key cost-saving measure, and believes that any move away from this at the same time as councils look to cut their spending is sure to impact on jobs.

However, Mr Neill has again stressed the government's commitment to addressing the issue of collection frequency, stating that: “The new government will be working with councils to improve the frequency and quality of recycling and rubbish collections.”

The GMB and Veolia are next scheduled to meet on Friday (September 24).