2025 Birmingham bin strike

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}

{{short description|Industrial action over pay in the garbage disposal industry}}

{{EngvarB|date=July 2021}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}

{{Infobox international football competition

| tourney_name = 2025 Birmingham bin strikes

| other_titles = Birmingham bin strikes

| dates = 11 March 2025 - (ongoing)

| result = Ongoing, not yet decided.

}}

The 2025 Birmingham bin strike is a current standoff between members of the Unite union and the city council in Birmingham, England.{{Cite news |last1=Fofana |first1=Aida |last2=Mayor |first2=Rob |date=14 April 2025 |title=Birmingham bin strike to continue as deal rejected |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9ljx8qdqdo |access-date=2025-04-15 |publisher=BBC News}} The strike began on 11 March 2025 due to a dispute over pay and the elimination of Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) roles.{{Cite news |date=14 April 2025 |title=Birmingham bin strike to continue after refuse workers reject council's offer |url=https://news.sky.com/story/birmingham-bin-strike-to-continue-after-union-rejects-councils-offer-13348716 |access-date=2025-04-15 |work=Sky News}}

According to the union, approximately 150 to 170 of its members are facing pay cuts of up to £8,000 annually, with hundreds more losing out on pay progression. The union also argues that the WRCO is important to health and safety. According to Birmingham City Council, only 17 workers would be affected; the impact on pay would be far less; and all those affected by the elimination of the WRCO role have been offered other roles for equivalent pay, training as large goods vehicle (LGV) drivers, or voluntary redundancy payouts. The council also says that the WRCO role does not exist at other councils, and that retaining the role opens it up to equal pay claims, since it is performed mainly by men.

In March 2025, the Birmingham City Council declared a major incident after 17,000 tonnes of rubbish were left uncollected on the streets.{{Cite news |last=Murray |first=Jessica |date=14 April 2025 |title=Birmingham bin workers reject deal to end strike |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/apr/14/birmingham-bin-workers-reject-deal-to-end-strike |access-date=2025-04-15 |newspaper=The Guardian}} The city council has called on other local authorities to assist with clearing the backlog of rubbish.{{Cite news |last1=Lissaman |first1=Claire |last2=Gupta |first2=Tanya |date=13 April 2025 |title=Army experts called in over Birmingham bin strike |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgkg34j0d76o |access-date=2025-04-15 |publisher=BBC News}} In April, the British government called in Army specialists, including office-based military planners, to provide logistical support for the council, rather than deploying soldiers.{{Cite news |last=Stavrou |first=Athena |date=14 April 2025 |title=Rayner calls in the army over Birmingham bin strike as piles of rubbish grow |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/birmingham-bin-strike-army-government-b2732600.html |access-date=2025-04-15 |newspaper=The Independent}}

Media reporting has indicated that different areas of the city have been impacted by the strike to different extents, with lower income inner city areas such as Sparkhill, Balsall Heath, Small Heath, Sparkbrook and Ladywood suffering from the piling up of refuse to a greater degree than more affluent suburbs like Harborne and Edgbaston, replicating a pattern seen in the city's previous bin strike in 2017. Rachel Adams, a researcher at the University of Birmingham's Health Services Management Centre, suggested that factors contributing to this include differences in population density, access to transport and distance to waste disposal sites. Some residents of poorer areas also claimed that their localities were also used for flytipping by people from elsewhere, and that wealthier areas were being prioritised for refuse collection rounds.{{cite web |last=Mackie |first=Phil |date=19 April 2025 |title=Bin strike exposes divide between rich and poor |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2wpe4pql0o |website=bbc.co.uk |access-date=19 April 2025}}{{cite web |last=Ibrahim |first=Mimi |date=18 April 2025 |title='The posh areas get cleared': bin strikes illustrate Birmingham's wealth gap |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/apr/18/bin-strikes-illustrate-birmingham-wealth-gap |website=theguardian.com |access-date=19 April 2025}}