Every bin worker at Birmingham City Council affected by pay cuts and downgrades would receive a £16,000 payout as part of a strike-ending deal proposed by the Labour leadership, it was claimed today.
Strike-Ending Deal 'In Sight'
In a surprise statement, the council's Labour leader John Cotton claimed the end of the 16-month strike was 'in sight' based on a deal reached between Labour politicians and leaders of the Unite union. He told reporters in Victoria Square today, Monday, April 27, the proposal on the table 'would be good for the workforce, represent good value for money and would not repeat the mistakes of the past and risk creating new structural equal pay liabilities'.
He called a press conference to make his announcement and media arrived expecting to learn the strike was over. But instead, in a move that political rivals dismissed as 'an election stunt', he announced a deal was now 'in sight' based on talks between Unite and Labour politicians.
Details of the Proposal
The two sides claimed they had reached a ballpark deal that could bring the dispute to an end – as long as Labour were re-elected to run the council on May 7. The deal would have to be approved by council officers, commissioners and Unite members, as well as being approved by the incoming political administration, and be subject to legal sign-off.
Unite's national officer Onay Kasab fleshed out the proposal and said it would include a £16,000 payout to every affected bin worker, including bin lorry drivers who had been downgraded. It would also include a route to permanent jobs for agency bin workers, agreements over staff who had been 'acting up' and pensions gaps being filled, he claimed.
The deal needed 'finalising and to go to our members', Mr Kasab said, but it was a key moment in the dispute. He said a 'genuine offer' had been put on the table by Labour that met Unite's demands. He said Labour West Midlands mayor Richard Parker had played a key role in getting the proposal agreed. He also claimed senior Labour politicians – up to Prime Minister Keir Starmer – were 'more than aware' of what was being proposed.
Political Reactions
Cynical political opponents decried it as a 'stunt' saying there was no deal and it was a ploy to try to keep Labour in charge in Birmingham. Councillor Robert Alden, Local Conservatives group leader, said it was meaningless. 'There is no lawful deal to end the bin strike, despite the Labour leader’s posturing,' he said.
Labour insiders were asked if the announcement was a mirror image of the flawed and highly-controversial deal struck between former Labour leader John Clancy and the bins union in 2017. That deal ended in massive recriminations, triggering Clancy's demotion and a wave of new equal pay claims. They denied that was the case.
Unite previously pressed for a very similar deal involving payouts to affected workers. But at the time, last July, the Labour-led council walked away from negotiations, claiming they could not do the deal Unite wanted without jeopardising new equal pay issues.
In a statement headlined 'Labour and Unite reach agreement that will end the bin strike', Councillor Cotton said: 'A re-elected Labour administration under my leadership will work to get this deal approved as a matter of absolute priority. The council can then move forward and offer the people of Birmingham the services that they deserve.'
Councillor Roger Harmer, Liberal Democrat local leader, said: 'There is no deal, and pretending there is only threatens to make it harder to resolve this strike. A deal can only be made by senior officers and I am told they have played no part in developing this proposal. This is nothing short of a cynical pre-election ploy by a Labour Party heading for a massive defeat.'
Green party local leader Julien Pritchard added: 'Brummies are rightly fed-up with the political games from Labour – suddenly 'finding' a solution days from a local election is the self-interested politics that our communities are so fed-up with.'
