Glasgow council leader told to ‘step up or step aside’ over bin strike

The council confirmed yesterday that it was looking at ‘contingency’ measures, following the third day of strikes by refuse workers.

They argue that the strike is ‘unlawful’ and said it would consider recouping public funds spent on private contractors from union GMB.

What did Glasgow City Council say?

A council spokesperson said: “The GMB has left us with no option but to explore contingency plans to tackle the unfolding public health and fire hazards the strike is causing. This is not an action we consider lightly and this is the first time we have had to consider it since 2009.

“We had appealed on Sunday to them, during the ongoing negotiations, for public health exemptions which included refuse collections from high rises, student accommodation and street bins and but this was refused.

“We can’t have rubbish piling up - especially when the union keeps changing the duration of the strike. On Sunday they told us the strike would last 2 or 3 days, today they told us 8 days.

“During a strike meeting today, we told GMB that our senior counsel’s opinion is that the strike is unlawful but our hope remains that we can resolve the issues with continuing dialogue. We will be considering recouping any public funds spent on private contractors from the GMB - as our citizens should not be penalised in the pocket for a dispute over national pay talks.”

How did GMB respond?

GMB Scotland senior organiser Keir Greenaway said: “The council has repeatedly threatened our members with anti-union laws, but if their officials had any grounds for pursuing this they would have done so.

“But let’s be clear that if the council are using agency staff to try and break this strike action then they would be the ones breaking the law.

“Our members are striking because they have been paid so poorly and treated so badly for too long, and we have tabled serious proposals to reset industrial relations which the council officials have again rejected.

“But where is Glasgow’s political leadership? The silence is absolutely deafening from the council leader Susan Aitken, and she should either step up or step aside.”

Why are the refuse workers striking?

The refuse workers decided on last-minute strike action despite a late pay offer from COSLA - the local authority body.

It was announced on Friday that the strike would not be going ahead after the pay offer, however, just two days later, GMB reversed the decision and said the strike would happen.

It argued that the council had not given members enough time to consider the offer.