Job & Talent workers industrial action ballot over bullying, harassment and threat of blacklisting

Agency refuse workers employed on behalf of Birmingham council are being balloted for strike action over bullying, harassment and the threat of blacklisting, Unite, the UK’s leading union, said today.

Birmingham council has been rocked by a blacklisting scandal after a manager was caught on camera telling agency staff that council chiefs had told him workers will be banned from permanent roles if they refuse to cross picket lines. Unite is now demanding an independent inquiry, following the failure of the council to act on the union’s concerns.

A growing number of Job & Talent agency staff are refusing to cross the picket lines of striking Birmingham bin workers due to unsustainable workloads and the toxic and bullying workplace culture at the council’s refuse department.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite fully backs Job & Talent workers who are being treated appallingly by the agency and the council. The Birmingham bin dispute just keeps getting worse because of the complete and utter mismanagement and vindictive behaviour of the council.

“Government ministers and Birmingham councillors need to step in and ensure a fair deal for all Birmingham bin workers – which is the only way strikes will come to an end.”

Workloads for agency staff are unsustainable because there are no recycling or garden waste collections, meaning that all refuse ends up in a single bin, which is often extremely heavy and overflowing.

One agency worker said: “Management try and give you extra work every day, even if you genuinely don’t have the time to do it they will force you to do it. If you speak up for yourself and your colleagues and if they don’t like what they hear it’s one phone call to the agency and you’re gone. It’s a really toxic environment. The way the managers speak to you is rude, there is no respect. You’re not talked to like a person and there’s constant pressure.”

Another said: “Many of us work through our breaks or do longer hours without being paid as we are put under pressure. We received a text from management to our personal phones saying ‘all crews are expected to complete their work today following delays. Returning to the depot early with dropped work may result in disciplinary action’. It felt like bullying and like a threat. Also, how can they discipline you if you are agency staff? There’s not disciplinaries for us, we just get told not to come back.”

A third agency worker commented: “When we’ve complained about problems we’ve been singled out and given extra work on top of our rounds for weeks. Because we couldn’t complete the extra work, we were told we weren’t good enough to be on our rounds. You feel like there will be a backlash if you speak up.”

The strike action ballot of Unite members at Job & Talent working on the Birmingham council bins contract will close on 11 November. Strike action by agency workers would severely add to the disruption already caused to Birmingham’s refuse collection services.

Directly employed Birmingham bin workers have been on strike since January over effective fire and rehire cuts of up to £8,000, with industrial action by those workers set to last until at least March next year.

ENDS

For media enquires ONLY contact senior Unite communications officer Ryan Fletcher on 07849 090215 or 020 3371 2065.

Email: ryan.fletcher@unitetheunion.org

Unite is Britain and Ireland’s largest union with members working across all sectors of the economy. The general secretary is Sharon Graham.