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North Somerset Environment Company (NSEC), North Somerset Council's supplier of recycling and waste services, and the GMB union have confirmed that an agreement has been reached which will see an end to the threat of strike action.
All household (black bin) waste, recycling and garden waste collections will continue as usual. North Somerset’s three recycling centres (Backwell, Portishead and Weston-super-Mare) will also continue to open as normal.
The agreement also means an end to the overtime ban imposed by the GMB in place between Tuesday 12 and Saturday 30 April. This limited NSEC’s ability to complete rounds on normal collection days in some instances.
Residents can check their usual day for household (black bin) waste, recycling or garden waste collections on the council’s website (www.n-somerset.gov.uk/calendar).
Councillor Mike Solomon, North Somerset Council’s executive member for neighbourhoods and community services, said: “It’s welcome news to learn that GMB members have voted in favour of the latest offer package.
“I’m sure that the strike being called off will come as a relief to residents. I’d like to repeat my thanks for their patience, understanding and cooperation during this very challenging time.
“I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank the team at NSEC for their efforts and the professional way in which they dealt with the industrial action process. Secondly to ACAS, the UK's industrial mediation service, for their support. Thanks must also go to our crews and those working in the recycling centres for their continued hard work during the negotiations.”
Brian Veale, Managing Director at North Somerset Environment Company, said: “We’re pleased that a conclusion has been drawn to what has been a very challenging period. I’d like to thank the GMB and ACAS for the way they have worked with us during the negotiations.
“We fully appreciate that not all our colleagues voted in favour and we aim to continue to strive to engage with all our workforce. We also plan to use the period of stability over the next two years to develop our business, while remaining focussed on providing continued improvements to our service for residents.”
For the latest updates, please visit the council's website (www.n-somerset.gov.uk/waste) and the Recycling and Waste Team’s social media accounts – Facebook (www.facebook.com/nsrecyclingandwaste) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ns_recycling).