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In a ballot that took place by the GMB union last week, a jointly agreed revised and improved offer was rejected by members.
To move the situation forward, a meeting will take place on Monday 25 April between North Somerset Environment Company (NSEC), North Somerset Council’s supplier of recycling and waste services, and the GMB union. ACAS, the UK's industrial mediation service, will also attend to support the negotiation process.
To allow these ongoing negotiations to take place, the GMB union has agreed to suspend planned strike action on the following two days this week:
- Thursday 21 April, and
- Friday 22 April.
Recycling services will therefore go ahead as usual. North Somerset’s three recycling centres (Backwell, Portishead and Weston-super-Mare) will also open as normal on these dates.
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).
The overtime ban imposed by the GMB remains in place for the period between Tuesday 12 and Saturday 30 April. This means that during those dates, GMB members are not able to work extra time to help NSEC catch-up with any backlog.
Councillor Mike Solomon, North Somerset Council’s executive member for neighbourhoods and community services, said: “It’s disappointing that GMB members voted against the latest offer package but I’m really pleased strike action has been called off so residents will continue to receive collections and recycling centres will be open this week as usual.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank our crews and those working in our recycling centres for their hard work over the busy Easter bank holiday weekend.
“The threat of industrial action isn’t over yet but we’re working really hard to limit the disruption. I’d like to repeat my thanks to residents for their patience, understanding and cooperation during this very challenging time. I encourage residents to check our website homepage and social media channels for the latest updates as the situation is evolving at pace.”
Brian Veale, Managing Director at North Somerset Environment Company, said: “Although the outcome of the ballot is not what we would have wanted, I’m encouraged to learn that there wasn’t much of a margin between those in favour and those against accepting the latest package.
“We remain willing to engage with GMB and look forward to our next meeting where, with assistance from ACAS, we hope to draw a conclusion to these negotiations.”
For the latest updates, please visit the council's website (https://www.n-somerset.gov.uk/waste) and the Recycling and Waste Team’s social media accounts – Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/nsrecyclingandwaste) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ns_recycling).