Summer bin strikes loom as Unite and GMB unions ballot cleansing staff for industrial action

Key Points

Members of the Unite and GMB trade unions can cast ballots until July 1
Unison waste and recycling workers in Edinburgh are also being balloted for strike action
All three unions reject pay offer from Cosla that would see staff get a 2.2% pay hike in April, with a further 2% increase at the start of October 2024
The last bin strike in 2022 saw rubbish pile high in the streets of towns and cities across the country
Major international events such as the Edinburgh Fringe could be affected if strike action goes ahead

Overflowing rubbish bins could be a common sight across Scotland again this summer as thousands of cleansing and waste workers are being balloted for strike action.

Members of the Unite and GMB trade unions can cast their ballots from Wednesday until July 1.

It comes after both unions rejected a pay offer “outright” made to its members by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA).

The 18-month deal, which covers the period April 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025, would see council staff get a 2.2% pay hike from April this year, with a further 2% increase at the start of October 2024.

If the members of both unions vote for strike action, they could both walk out as early as July 15.

Waste and recycling workers in Edinburgh who are members of Unison, Scotland’s largest local government union, are also being balloted for industrial action until July 1.

Major international events such as the Edinburgh Fringe could be affected if that action goes ahead.

The last bin strike in 2022 saw rubbish pile high in the streets of towns and cities across the country following a dispute with refuse workers belonging to the Unison, Unite and GMB trade unions.

Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser in public services, urged council leaders and ministers to act with urgency to avert similar scenes.

He said: “It is deeply frustrating council workers are once again being driven to industrial action to secure a fair offer and the blame for that lies squarely with council leaders and ministers.

“Why has so much time been wasted? Why are council leaders not already in serious discussions with unions and the Scottish Government about how to fund a fair offer?

“Why on earth should our members in Scotland be asked to accept an offer that is less than that being offered to council colleagues in England?”.

Unite said it rejected the offer and the proposal to change the pay anniversary date from April to October on the basis that it is “nothing but an attempt to kick the can down the road.”

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “COSLA has taken months to put a formal pay offer to our local government membership, and it’s a derisory one at that.

“Unite’s representatives rightly rejected this offer outright. The fight for better jobs, pay and conditions in local government will continue.

“We are clear that our members shouldn’t settle for anything that doesn’t come close to meeting their demands.”

Unison, Scotland’s largest local government union, has told City of Edinburgh Council that strike ballot papers will be sent out on Monday.

The union says the current pay offer from Cosla to local government workers falls significantly short of what they deserve, and well below the pay claim that unions submitted earlier this year.

Unison Edinburgh branch secretary David Harrold said: “If workers vote to strike, rubbish will pile up on the streets again at the Edinburgh Festival – one of Scotland’s truly global events.

“The last thing anyone wants to do is take strike action, but local government workers deserve a fair increase to stop their pay lagging behind inflation and other sectors in the economy.

“This is about more than just waste workers, we are standing together for fair pay for every council worker in the country.”

A COSLA spokesperson insisted there had been a number of “very constructive” meetings of the Scottish Joint Council steering group – which brings together the unions along with councils.

These have resulted in the formal pay offer being made to local government workers – with the spokesperson stressing the deal is “at the limit” of what councils can afford.

The spokesperson said: “This offer fully utilises the negotiating mandate provided by Cosla leaders and is at the limit of affordability, given the severe financial constraints councils are facing in the context of a flat cash local government settlement.

“We believe that this is a strong, fair, and credible offer which reflects the high value council leaders place on the local government workforce and the invaluable work they do every day to serve our communities.”