Birmingham residents have been hit with yet another wave of disruption to their bin collections following a fresh protest at a key council depot on Friday, December 19.
Third Friday of Depot Protests
The latest action targeted the council's Smithfield depot on Pershore Street, causing significant delays to refuse lorries leaving the site. Birmingham City Council warned taxpayers that collections could be delayed or missed entirely as a result. This marks the third consecutive Friday that protests have been staged outside the authority's depots, severely impacting waste services.
In a post on social media platform X, the council stated: “Protests at Smithfield depot this morning may cause delays to waste collections. Please leave your bins out as normal and we will collect them as soon as we can.” The identity of the protesters on this occasion remains unclear.
A Year-Long Dispute Rumbles On
This incident is the latest chapter in a bitter, near year-long industrial dispute between Birmingham bin workers and the council. The conflict centres on proposed changes to pay and working conditions. Some council bin staff have been taking action since January over what the Unite union describes as ‘fire and rehire pay cuts of up to £8,000’. They escalated to an all-out strike on March 11.
More recently, agency staff from Job & Talent joined the action a little over a month ago, citing allegations of ‘bullying, harassment and the threat of blacklisting’.
The council has previously apologised for mistakenly attributing a protest on December 5 at the Atlas depot in Tyseley to Unite. That action was in fact carried out by members of the Socialist Party, who described themselves as independent activists supporting the striking workers.
Council Claims Contingency Plan is Working
Despite the ongoing protests and strike action, Birmingham City Council maintains that its contingency measures are effective. A council spokeswoman said: “While we are disappointed the dispute has not been resolved... we are continuing to make regular waste collections and our contingency plan is working.”
The authority claims it has been collecting an average of approximately 1,330 tonnes of kerbside waste every day, which it says is more than before the industrial action began. It also reports a 22% increase in waste collected per employee and a 52% improvement in missed collections over the last six months.
Nevertheless, for many Birmingham households, the reality remains one of unreliable service and overflowing bins, as the city's never-ending waste collection saga continues into the festive period.
