In a dispute over salary, refuse employees in a London borough are threatening a two-week strike, only weeks after a previous strike left bins unemptied.
It was revealed today that Unite members in the east London borough of Newham will walk out on September 20, the day after the Queen’s burial.
The statement was delivered on the same day that the nation witnessed the monarch’s funeral procession into Westminster Hall.
Unite refuted accusations that Newham Council had promised workers a wage increase of up to 17.9%, insisting that the offer was worth only £950 if bank holidays are worked.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham stated, “The borough must cease spreading false information and negotiate an end to the strike.”
In a dispute over salary, trash employees in a London municipality are threatening a two-week strike, only weeks after a previous strike left garbage uncollected (Pictured: refuse workers strike in Newham on September 1)
It was revealed today that Unite members in the east London borough of Newham will walk out on September 20 – the day after the Queen’s burial.
‘Clearly, the workers would not be on strike if these reports about astronomical wage increases were true.
The workers are now prepared to strike for an additional two weeks. They have the full support of Unite.’
Involved in the conflict are roughly 130 loaders and drivers. The previous strike ran from August 27 to September 3 and was authorized by a vote of 99 percent of members.
The industrial action occurs on the fifth day of formal mourning, the day the queen’s casket arrives at the Palace of Westminster.
Other unions have lately called off strikes out of respect for the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and the next 10 days of formal mourning, which conclude on September 19.
After the sad announcement, Royal Mail canceled the second day of a 48-hour strike over salary and working conditions.
Unite refuted Newham Council’s assertions that the workers were promised a salary increase of up to 17.9%, insisting that the arrangement was only worth £950 if bank holidays are worked.
The National Union of Rail, Maritime, and Transport Employees canceled rail workers’ intentions to strike on September 15 and 17.
The Royal College of Nursing had planned to conduct a poll of its 300,000 members for industrial action on September 15, but this has been postponed due to the passing of the Queen.
Elsewhere, criminal barristers have announced they will maintain their total strike notwithstanding the national period of mourning.
Industrial action has dominated the summer, with rail walkouts by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA), ASLEF and Transport for London (TfL) in July and August causing severe disruptions for commuters.
Postal employees connected with the Communication Workers Union (CWU) engaged in five days of strike action in August and September. BT and Openreach employees went on strike over a salary dispute, adding to the hundreds of thousands of union members who have taken industrial action this summer.
Which other industries have joined the UK’s strike epidemic this year?
Throughout the summer of this year, strikes have extended across the economy and show little indication of abating. These are the areas affected thus far, as well as the unions driving the ballots.
TRANSPORT
Last month’s RMT strikes followed three days of action earlier in the year, during which half of the nation’s rail network was halted and service was reduced to one-fifth of normal levels.
Workers from the Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) and the train drivers’ union Aslef, which took action at Greater Anglia and the Croydon Tramlink, joined them.
Chiltern, Northern, TransPennine Express, and London Tramlink train drivers have also chosen to strike, bringing extra agony to commuters around England.
A threatened strike by British Airways was called off in July after a better salary offer was presented.
EDUCATION
The teachers’ union NAS/UWT will hold a vote if the government does not agree to a 12 percent salary increase. In November, a wage raise for 2022/23 is expected.
The National Education Union has stated that it will conduct a vote among its 460,000 members if the government does not grant a pay increase commensurate with inflation.
HEALTHCARE
The union representing NHS employees, Unison, has stated that strikes are likely if their yearly salary offer is not close to the rate of inflation. The British Medical Association, which represents doctors, has also stated that it will organize a vote if young doctors do not receive a 22% “restorative” wage increase.
The Royal College of Nursing has also asked a 5 percent above-inflation salary increase.
CIVIL SERVICE
The Public and Commercial Services Union, which represents public service employees, will have a vote on wages, pensions, and layoffs from September 26 to November.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
The Unison, GMB, and Unite unions have proposed a minimum £2,000 salary raise for local government employees in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Garbage collectors, library employees, teaching assistants, and care workers are examples of laborers.
Unite stated that it will support “any action” taken by workers to obtain a salary increase.
COMMUNICATIONS
After a vote by the Communication Workers Union, Royal Mail employees walked off the job for multiple days in August and will do so again on September 8 and 9.
The union has also mailed ballots to BT employees, including engineers, contact center employees, and retail workers, regarding compensation. It could result in the first strike at the company since it was privatised in the mid-1980s.