Simon Burgess

Members of the GMB union working on Brighton refuse will begin an all out strike from Monday November 9 in a pay dispute.

The 94% vote for action comes from the Conservative run council’s attempts to cut the pay of GMB members by up to £8,000 each and mirrors the equal pay dispute in Leeds now in its eighth week of strike action.

GMB members employed by Brighton and Hove council take their first day of strike action on Monday in a series of strikes that are set to bring refuse collection and street cleaning in Brighton to a standstill.

In total over 800 staff face pay cuts. In an official ballot, conducted by Electoral Reform Services, GMB members employed in Brighton Council’s Cityclean department voted by 94% to 6% to take part in an all out strike.

Mark Turner, GMB Branch Secretary said:
“I’ve never seen such a solid group of workers and this shows that they, like GMB members in Leeds, will do whatever it takes to protect themselves from Conservative pay cuts.

"GMB has had meetings with the opposition Labour and Green parties who support the workers. At the same time Mary Mears, the leader of the Conservative administration which is trying to implement the cuts, has hit the bunker and is not responding to e-mails or requests for a meeting.

"We are calling for the residents of Brighton & Hove to let Mary Mears know that she cannot stay in hiding and needs to bring a decent offer to the negotiating table or she will face the wrath of voters when the streets turn to chaos.”

Rob Macey GMB Organiser said:  
“GMB members don’t take this type of action lightly and we are conscious of the inconvenience it will bring to the residents of the city. We are also however confident that the public will support our members when they consider how they would react if they themselves were faced with pay cuts of up to £8000 each through no fault of their own. We are faced with another Leeds type dispute on the same issue which is now entering the tenth week of all out strike action.”

Charles Harrity, GMB Organiser also added:
“GMB members know that the public is on their side in this bitter dispute and we will be establishing a strike fund for any member of the public who wishes to make a donation to the workers.”

Former City Council Leader and Labour's Parliamentary Candidate for Brighton Kemptown, Simon Burgess, is calling for Mary Mears the Conservative City Council Leader to enter talks with local bin men immediately.

Simon Burgess said:
"This dispute is only happening because Mary Mears, the Conservative Council Leader, has not been talking to the unions directly. When I was leader I literally had an open door policy with the unions so that we could head off problems before they got out of hand.

"We didn't always agree but we found solutions. Equal pay is not an excuse to cut pay - this dispute will have to be settled at some point, it needs to be sorted now before it incoveniences local taxpayers.

"I will be joining the refuse workers at the gates of Cityclean at 6am on Monday to show my support for urgent negotiations."