A FOUR-DAY refuse collection strike over poverty pay in Cumbria is set to begin tomorrow, after last-minute talks failed to settle the dispute, Unite the union confirmed today. 

The walkouts in and around Workington involve about 60 staff employed by Allerdale Waste Services — a private company wholly owned by Cumberland Council.

The employees, some of whom are paid just £10.90 an hour, are “among the lowest-paid refuse workers throughout the UK,” the union charged.