Unite have published a video that appears to show a member of staff for Birmingham City Council saying agency workers will be banned from permanent roles if they join strike action.
The union have accused Birmingham City Council of ‘blacklisting’ agency workers who join industrial action as part of the long-running Birmingham bin strikes.
Unite says the recording was taken at the Atlas depot on 9 October and shows Job and Talent manager Mark Asson speaking.
In the recording, the speaker says: ‘people that do decide to join the picket line, then the council have confirmed to us that they are not going to get a permanent job’.
Birmingham City Council did not respond to a request for comment.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said that blacklisting workers for union activities is ‘despicable’.
“Those who do it are breaking the law and must be held to account,” Graham said. “Ministers must act now to stop this appalling behaviour and bring this dispute to an end with a fair deal for the bin workers. The strikes will not end until it does.”
Unite the Union and Birmingham City Council have been in dispute since last summer, with strike action beginning in January 2025.
The dispute is over the council’s decision to remove Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) roles.
In April, Birmingham City Council declared a major incident over the backlog of waste on the streets, with over 17,000 tonnes of waste being uncollected across Birmingham at one point.
Lichfield District Council assisted in clearing the backlog of waste, with the service delivered at a commercial rate and the cost met by Birmingham taxpayers.
The bin strikes in Birmingham could last until December after 97% of refuse workers voted in favour of continuing industrial action.