Members of Unite on the picket line in Tyseley, Birmingham, amid an ongoing refuse workers' strike in the city, April 1, 2025
Birmingham’s striking bin workers and supporters bring waste sites to a standstill
MORE than a dozen unions will rally behind the striking Birmingham bin workers as thousands attend a mega-picket against Labour government-backed “fire and rehire” plans in the city tomorrow.
The show of unity is another sign Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will face a strike wave as the fightback inspires workers across the economy, Unite national lead officer Onay Kasab told the Morning Star.
He said: “The workers themselves have been inspiring and what it means to central government is they need to take a good hard look at what’s going on here.
“The potential really is there for strike action to be taking place far more widely.
“Taking a look at what's going on in the local government, in public services also in the private sector, in the NHS.
“People will look at Birmingham and take inspiration and that could mean a fightback. If that means a strike wave then that’s exactly what it means.”
Birmingham Unite rep Danny Taylor said that his members are more determined than ever to continue their strike until December, saying that they have “effectively nothing to lose” after receiving council letters threatening them with compulsory redundancy if they accept regraded jobs on at least £8,000 a year less pay.
Mr Taylor said the mega-picket showed “that they are not alone and they are not fighting this battle alone, and it’s not just their fight, it’s everybody else’s fight.”
The Strike Map-co-ordinated demo billed as the biggest picket in a generation.
Aslef general secretary and Labour Unions chair Mick Whelan said: “We need an end to damaging cuts, an end to austerity and the promise that Labour were elected to deliver, making work pay.”
Fire Brigades Union leader Steve Wright said: “The Prime Minister and his deputy cannot stand by any longer and allow this attack on the jobs and wages of these workers who have lost their family incomes and faced dire poverty for many months.”
Birmingham City Council said that “everyone has a right to protest which we respect but people also have a right to work unhindered.”
