Bin workers blamed for stopping lorries at depot

Strike action by Birmingham's refuse workers left lorries blocked from leaving a waste depot, the city council has said.

Workers protesting at the Atlas Depot, in Tyseley, said they were only stopping lorries leaving if they had safety concerns about the trucks.

They also said workers had a legal right to picket and criticised a heavy police presence. A BBC reporter said he saw up to five police vehicles at the scene and the police helicopter in the air.

The council has blamed increased industrial action by Unite the Union members, who started an all-out strike this week, for causing the problem at the depot. Residents have said their streets had become "disgusting" as strikes ramped up.

Bin workers started the indefinite walkout on Tuesday, following on and off strike-days since the start of the year over pay and working conditions.

Up to 50 workers were at the depot on Friday morning to protest, Unite said, although only about 20 remained when the BBC went to the scene.

In a post on X, the council said: "Due to increased industrial action from Unite the Union, our waste trucks from the Atlas (based in Tyseley) depot are unable to leave the site at present, resulting in even more service disruption for residents.

"Apologies for the current situation; we understand the frustration this is causing."

Workers told the BBC that once safety issues with trucks were addressed, they were letting the them leave.

"The heavy police presence outside the Birmingham refuse workers pickets is totally unnecessary", a Unite statement said.

"The workers have a legal right to picket which the police are preventing and I'm sure the officers in attendance would agree that they have much better things to be doing.

"Unite understands the police are there at the council's insistence. Instead of wasting valuable police time in an attempt to intimidate the workers, Birmingham council could bring this to dispute to an end by stopping its brutal attacks on pay."

West Midlands Police said it was monitoring the strike action across various sites.

"We are in attendance to deal with any breach of the peace and bin lorries being unable to enter or leave the sites due to picketers," a statement said.

"Stopping the collection of waste is considered a risk for public health and safety in the community and a matter for all public agencies including policing."

The council said it would inform residents which depots its trucks were able to leave from so they would know which routes bins will be collected.

It also said it was unfortunate it needed police support.

"Everyone has a right to protest and we would urge those involved to remember their responsibilities and show respect to their colleagues," the council said.

"We would ask Unite to remind their members it is a criminal offence for people picketing who are using threatening or abusive behaviour to people walking past or crossing the picket line and to comply with requirements for a peaceful picket."

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