What bin strike announcement means for Birmingham
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Alex McIntyre
West Midlands
PA Media
The all-out strike in Birmingham has been going since March 2025
After one of the UK's longest industrial disputes in recent years, Birmingham has finally been told the end of the bin strike is "within sight".
On Monday, the city council said the authority and Unite had agreed a deal which could be put to members of the union for a vote.
It follows more than a year of industrial action, which began on 6 January 2025 when 350 workers staged a series of one-day walkouts before the all-out strike started weeks later on 11 March.
The strike has caused significant disruption to residents, with more than 400,000 having no recycling collections since the beginning of January 2025 and irregular waste collections.
The light at the end of the tunnel will comes as a relief for the city, but what exactly was announced and what does it mean for residents?
When will the disruption to collections end?
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The bin strike has caused widespread disruption to residents in Birmingham
According to council leader John Cotton's statement, a negotiated settlement was "within sight".
However, the local elections on 7 May meant the authority was prevented from making a final decision because of pre-poll restrictions on policy changes.
Onay Kasab, from Unite, also said the potential deal was on the table and it would need to be voted on by union members before it could be formally approved.
This means the ultimate end to the all-out strike is not yet known and will likely remain so until at least after the local elections.
What does it mean for the new waste service rollout?
The council previously said the intention was to roll out its new waste service from June 2026 "regardless of the strike situation".
The transformed service includes a weekly food collection and a second recycling bin - the city has one of the lowest recycling rates in the country.
The authority, which approved the plans on 9 December, said the service "must change" as it historically had a high level of missed collections.
What are the details of the agreement?
According to Unite, the full specifics of the deal remain confidential while awaiting the detailed offer from the council, which will then be voted on by union members.
But it said it was based off the ballpark agreement agreed at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) last year.
The union said this included:
Workers would get a minimum of two years' cushion from the impact of the job evaluation process instead six months
Striking agency workers with at least 12 months of employment on the contract would be offered a path to permanent employment
Disciplinary issues will be quashed and the gross misconduct issue reviewed
For pension purposes the dispute will be treated as authorised absence
Legal action on both sides will be ended
What has the council said?
Birmingham City Council leader John Cotton said it would be "good for the workforce"
During his statement, Cotton said the potential deal would be "good for the workforce" and represented good value for money.
"I want our workforce to be able to return to work and help us deliver the quality refuse and recycling services the people of this city deserve," he said.
"That's why throughout this dispute I have resisted those who would dismiss the striking workers instead of negotiating."
He said he had instructed officers to move forward with negotiations so that the matter could be brought to a close.
What has Unite said?
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Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said it was a "vindication" for the striking bin workers
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the announcement today was a "vindication of the bin workers' struggle for a decent deal".
She said it followed months of "intense" negotiations to get the ballpark deal originally agreed last year "back on the table" so union members could vote on it.
"I salute the fortitude of my members who have needlessly been forced to endure months of attacks and hardship to get us to this point," she added.
What have the opposition parties said?
Opposition parties were quick to condemn the timing of the Labour-run council's statement due to it coming 10 days before voters in Birmingham go to the polls.
The city's Conservative group leader, Robert Alden, said Labour had put its political interests ahead of residents, calling it an "election stunt".
"If Labour had a lawful deal, they would already have put it to the council to agree months ago," he said.
A Reform UK spokesperson said the authority had come back to the same deal which it rejected last year and "nothing has changed except the election timetable".
The leader of the Green Party, councillor Julien Pritchard, accused Labour of playing "political games".
"Labour could have resolved this strike months ago, saving misery and millions of pounds," he said.
Liberal Democrat leader Roger Harmer echoed criticism by other parties, calling the move "nothing short of a cynical pre-election ploy by a Labour Party heading for a massive defeat"
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