Council workers unite to reduce strike impact

Members of the trade union Unite will vote on whether or not to hold industrial action in November but insist they are keen to ensure the action has as little impact on the general public as possible.

The strike, if it goes ahead, will be a protest against the UK government’s proposed changes to public sector pension schemes.

Industrial action by Unite could impact on bin collections, leisure services, street cleansing, building maintenance, vehicle maintenance and potentially cemetery services.

But Nigel Gregg. the senior Unite representative at Lisburn City Council and Chairman of the Local Authority Sector Committee, said the union intended to enter into negotiations with the council in order to minimise the impact of industrial action on local people.

“The dispute isn’t against Lisburn City Council and we have extended an invitation at a local level for them to enter into negotiations to minimise the impact of any action,” explained Mr Gregg.

“We want to public to know that we are trying to keep disruption to an absolute minimum, whilst at the same time reserving our right to hold a protest.

“The council will want to maintain as full a range of services as possible and we want to accommodate that as much as we reasonably can.”

At a local level, Unite are also writing to local community groups and are hoping to hold a meeting with them and with local politicians to discuss any action and the impact it may have.

Ballot papers will be sent to Unite members next week and a decision on industrial action is expected at the beginning of November. In the meantime local representatives will be working hard to ensure there is as little disruption as possible if the action goes ahead.

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