A trade unionist has admitted he “agrees” with GB News host Andrew Pierce as he pinpointed a key factor in the dispute over Birmingham’s bin strike chaos.
Speaking to GB News, the National Lead Officer at Unite Onay Kasab laid bare his disappointment at Labour’s role in the ongoing havoc.
Unite has long held strong ties with the Labour Party, but their relationship has grown increasingly fractious in recent months with General Secretary Sharron Graham even threatening to sever ties in September.
Making his argument, Andrew told Mr Kasab: “This is a Labour council, Unite traditionally has supported the Labour Party, it’s given millions of pounds to the Labour Party over the years.
“Are you not surprised that somebody who is a big hitter in the cabinet, somebody perhaps who is in charge of the Labour Government hasn’t knocked heads together in the council to get this sorted out? I suspect Labour will pay a very heavy price for this at the May local elections next year.”
Onay Kasab has admitted he ‘agrees with GB News’ amid Birmingham’s bin strike chaos
|
PA / GB NEWS
Mr Kasab responded: “Again, I find myself agreeing with GB News, even coming from a trade union, but you’re absolutely right. An awful lot of our members are saying, why is the union continuing to be affiliated to a Labour Party where we’ve got a Labour council under a Labour Government that is cutting workers’ pay by up to £8,000 a year?
“And look, the reality is that they’ve already lost a by-election a couple of weeks ago. There are elections coming up in May next year, and really the Labour Party need to think on and act sharp.”
Mr Kasab was quizzed on whether he believes it is “shameful” that the strikes have rumbled on for so many months without resolution, to which he responded: “You’re absolutely right, it is shameful. But it doesn’t involve a handful of people, we have all of the drivers at Birmingham City Council who face a pay cut of £8,000, so it’s moved on considerably since the start of the strike.
“And what’s happened now is that those agency workers who were brought in by Birmingham City Council to try and break the strike, and you would think that Birmingham City Council would treat these workers really, really well, but it’s actually the opposite.”
Thousands of tonnes of rubbish has been going uncollected across Birmingham since March
|
GETTYHighlighting the “toxic atmosphere” employees are facing amid the strikes, the Unite Union officer explained: “We’ve been told about a toxic atmosphere at work, breaches of serious health and safety, and don’t forget, as well as a dirty job, this is a dangerous job as well.
“We have had people involved in accidents at the back of vehicles. A couple of years ago, somebody died as a result. There are serious health and safety breaches taking place at work and people being threatened, but unless they work unsafely, then they will no longer have a job.”
Mr Kasab added: “We’ve also got threats of blacklisting where people are told if you join a trade union, take part in trade union activity, then you can forget about having a job. So it’s not surprising that those workers now as well have voted for strike action.
“Strike pay is not close to their salary, so our members are making a significant sacrifice. But that’s because they know that unless they do something about what is taking place now, then the sacrifice becomes a permanent sacrifice of £8,000 a year. So just like many disputes, people are making a sacrifice now in the media to try and secure their futures.”
Mr Kasab questioned why Unite union is ‘continuing to be affiliated to a Labour Government that is cutting workers’ pay by up to £8,000 a year’
|
GB NEWS
In a statement, a spokesman for Birmingham City Council said: “While we are disappointed that the dispute has not been resolved as unite has rejected all our offers, we’re continuing to make regular waste collections and our contingency plan is working.
“We have been collecting an average approximately of 1,330 tons of kerbside waste every day, more than we did prior to industrial action, and over the last six months we have collected over 100,000 tonnes of kerbside waste.”
In another statement, the recruitment agency Job and Talent said: “Job and Talent remains firmly committed to operating with transparency, integrity and full compliance with employment laws.
“We prioritise the rights, welfare and safety of our workers and maintain regular communication to ensure they feel supported.”