BBC News, West Midlands
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has urged striking bin workers in Birmingham to accept a new deal to end the dispute – sparking an angry response from the head of the Unite union.
Rayner said a “significantly improved” offer had been made and that the city council had “moved significantly to meet the demands of the workers so we can see an end to this dispute”.
However, Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said the deal represented “a partial deal on pay protection for a few” and that the striking bin workers were “in the driving seat around what they wish to accept”.
All-out strikes in Birmingham began on 11 March and have seen piles of bin bags line many streets.
At the end of last month, the council declared a major incident, citing an estimated 17,000 tonnes of rubbish across the city over the first four weeks of the strike.
There have also been calls in the House of Commons to involve the Army in clearing up, amid reports of an increase in rats and concerns about public health.
The dispute centres on the loss of a health and safety job role.
Unite said it would affect about 150 staff and mean a cut of up to £8,000 a year for some, and the loss of pay progression for hundreds of others.
However, Birmingham City Council said the post did not exist at other authorities and it has disputed both the number of staff affected and the sum of money involved.
Despite several rounds of negotiations, the two parties it seems cannot even agree on fundamental details.
The government has largely backed the Labour-run local authority over Unite, which until last year’s general election campaign was one of the party’s biggest donors.
On a visit to a recycling centre in Birmingham on Thursday, Rayner urged workers to accept the latest deal on the table.
She said she wanted to see “a fair resolution to this” and added: “I would urge Unite to suspend the action and accept the improved deal.
“This dispute is causing misery and disruption to residents and the backlog must be dealt with quickly to address public health risks.”
Her direct appeal to the workers was met by an angry response from Graham.
The Unite leader said: “Whilst it is helpful that the government finally realised after weeks that they have a role in this dispute, the constant attacks and briefings against these low paid bin workers is frankly a disgrace.”
She said the new deal “still leaves these workers worrying about how they are going to pay their mortgages and rent payments in a few months’ time”.
Ms Graham said members would be voting in another ballot, which would close at the end of Monday and that her union continued to back them “100%”.
Rayner is not the only member of the Labour government to get involved.
A day after last week’s visit by local government minister Jim McMahon officers changed their approach to policing a picket line at the Tyseley depot.
Unite members had previously been effective at delaying bin lorries from being deployed, but from 4 April they were told their actions could amount to public order offences.
Speaking on Thursday, McMahon said 120 wagons had completed their rounds on the day, compared with about 20 a week ago.
Lichfield District Council is also helping to clear the rubbish piled on streets.