Birmingham agency bin staff to strike over bullying

Agency reject workers brought in to cover up a long-running bin strike in Birmingham have voted to take industrial action over allegations of bullying and harassment.

Hundreds of members of Unite in Birmingham have been on strike since March over pay and employment disputes.

Unite has claimed that a growing number of agency staff are refusing to cross the picket line of striking bin workers over “unsustainable workloads” and a bullying workplace culture at the council’s rubbish department.

On Monday, the agency’s staff voted to join official picket lines starting Dec. 1.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This is a real escalation of the dispute over agency workers now joining picket lines because of their poor treatment by Job and Talent and Birmingham council.”

Birmingham City Council has previously denied the allegations and said it “does not condone any action that is contrary to legislation and good employment practice”.

Unite union members in the city began a full strike seven months ago and voted in September to extend their action until March.

Last month the union accused senior council leaders of threatening to blacklist staff who refused to cross the picket line of striking bin workers.

Images showing a manager from Job and Talent were shared Telling staff that council chiefs will ban them from work.