Refuse and Resist! - Support the Striking Refuse Workers

bristol | protests | press release Monday June 08, 2009 11:10 by Spoons

The Truth! - From A Striking Refuse Worker

Bristol Binmen are on all out strike from this wednesday 10th June, in a dispute over pay. Please send messages of support to pam.jennings@unitetheunion.com

When Sita took on the contract from Bristol City Council to do the refuse collecting and street cleaning, part of the agreement was that they kept the workers on the same contracts as before, holidays, sick pay and an annual (every November) index linked pay rise.

We haven't had a pay rise since Nov 2007. This current dispute relates to a pay increase we were due last November - over 7 months ago ! At that time the inflation rate was running at just below 5% which is why we asked for that amount.

Sita have dragged this dispute out until now and we have voted to strike only as an absolute last resort because we felt we had no alternative. We don't want to strike and are obviously losing money as a result.

Up to 100 Bristol bin men picket their local depot

They are saying that they can't afford to pay us more than 2.75% saying they have no money blaming it on the current economic climate. This is a blatant lie. Under the terms of their contract with the city council Sita are paid all ALL of their annual expenses PLUS 16% on top of that, so the economic situation doesn't affect them in any way.

Sita is part of a french owned company called Suez Environment, which has a turnover of £12 billion of which 46% comes from it's waste business (Sita), as reported in the Financial Times, Dec 2008.

Do you think they would try this with their french workforce ?

We have been totally misrepresented by the local media - TV, radio and newspapers. All that the public are hearing is the management side of things - lazy greedy bin-men etc.

Please back your Refuse Collectors.