Coventry bin lorry drivers vote to continue strike into summer

Bin lorry drivers in Coventry have voted to continue industrial action into the summer in a dispute over pay.

The Unite members have been on all-out strike since 31 January after failing to reach agreement with the council.

The union said 100% of those who voted had supported continuing the strike and that "the council's responsibility now is to reach an agreement with Unite".

The city council has disputed figures put forward by the union and rejected claims staff are poorly paid.

During the dispute, the Labour-run authority has provided waste collections via a private contractor it owns. Temporary drop-off sites have also been set up.

In March, the council said arbitration service Acas had agreed with its pay grades, and believed both the authority and Unite would be bound by the terms.

However, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the process had been "based on an old, discredited job evaluation system".

The union has continued to insist drivers have not been paid "the market rate for the job".

Ms Graham said: "The truth is that Coventry Council is squandering millions in a failed attempt to break the strike, money that would be far better spent addressing low pay in this workforce and supporting local people through the cost of living crisis."

She said the support for the continuation of the strike had been "resounding".

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