BIRMINGHAM’S bin strikers are now in their eighth week of industrial action, a battle that has captured the imagination of the trade union movement as images of overflowing black bin bags dominate the city’s streets. The dispute has escalated further after the council’s decision to call in the military as scab labour, attempting to undermine the workers’ stand.  

The strike began when Birmingham City Council confirmed plans to slash bin workers’ pay by up to £8,000 a year, claiming the cuts were necessary to comply with equal pay legislation. But many see this as yet another attack in a decades-long campaign of austerity waged against the working class by successive governments, both Tory and Labour.  

With workers across the country sinking deeper into the cost-of-living crisis — and energy prices set to rise yet again this April — it is unconscionable for a Labour council, supposedly representing working-class people, to enforce what amounts to fire and rehire by stealth.  

To add insult to injury, the council is now deploying scab labour under police protection. They may have the state’s forces on their side, but we have the power of organised labour. This strike must be a turning point: a demonstration that workers will not be bullied into surrender.  

Strike Map has thrown its full support behind the strikers. In just one day, we raised £1,000 selling solidarity badges; demand was so high that we’ve now produced another 1,000. Last week, delivering a £2,000 cheque to the strike fund, we witnessed the heavy police presence first-hand, including multiple custody vans lining the picket lines. The authorities are itching for confrontation, while workers are simply fighting to survive. Many told us that if these pay cuts go through, their families will face destitution.  

What we saw was shocking, and it demanded action. That’s why we put out the call for a megapicket, a mass demonstration of solidarity. And you answered. Now, thousands of trade unionists from across the country are mobilising to join the picket lines in Birmingham.  

Within hours, coaches were organised from Oxfordshire, Bristol, Leeds, London, and beyond. Local activists and national union leaders have pledged their support, with speakers from across the movement set to address the crowd.  

When we founded Strike Map five years ago, a worker-powered, crowdfunded digital map of industrial action across Britain and Ireland, we always hoped it could be more than just an archive. We wanted it to be a hub for organising solidarity across our movement. Now, that vision is becoming reality.  

The Labour government, fresh from a drubbing at the polls, should take note: what’s happening in Birmingham is a warning. Stand with workers, or face electoral oblivion. Sign up to support your local picket line at www.strikemap.org.  

The megapicket will take place today at Lifford Lane Depot, Ebury Road, Kings Norton, Birmingham, B30 3JJ, from 6am. Speeches begin at 8am, running until approximately 9.30am.  

Confirmed speakers include:  
Gawain Little (General Federation of Trade Unions)  
Kate Taylor (Birmingham NEU)  
Nina Barbosa (NHS Workers Say No)  
Mick Whelan (Aslef)  
Pete Randle (Unite)  
Steve Wright (FBU)  
Daniel Kebede (National Education Union)  
Onay Kasab (Unite)  

The megapicket is supported by: ADCU, Aslef, BFAWU, Birmingham Fair Housing Campaign, Birmingham National Education Union, Birmingham TUC, Birmingham People’s Assembly, Birmingham UCU, Birmingham Unite Community, Birmingham Unison, CWU West Midlands, Equity, Fire Brigades Union, General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU), NHS Workers Say No, NSSN, Peace and Justice Project, PCS, TSSA, Unite for a Workers’ Economy, We Demand Change.