South London bin strikes: Millions warned of waste collection ‘standstill’ amid walk outs in June and July

Millions of Londoners have been warned they face bin collection disruption, amid the latest threat of a strike from refuse workers.

GMB union members at the largest waste transfer stations in London are set to take major strike action over a real-terms pay cut.

Key sites in Wandsworth and Battersea, which are used by all major waste carriers in South London, plus the general public, are heading for a standstill.

Organiser Paul Grafton told LondonWorld the strike days were slated for June 23, June 24, June 31, and July 1, but that more walkouts could be in the pipeline.

Waste stations collect commercial and household rubbish before it’s sent to landfill or recycled.

Members, employed by Cory Environmental Ltd, have rejected the company’s full and final pay offer as it falls well short of inflation and is therefore a de facto pay cut, the GMB says.

All south London’s major waste carriers use the sites at Smugglers Way in Wandsworth and Cringle Dock in Battersea, including Veolia, Biffa, Amey, Serco and Continental Landscapes.

Union workers are warning residents of all south London boroughs to expect a knock-on effect on their waste collection services.

No local waste sites have the capacity to store the large volumes of rubbish that would build up in the event that the Cory sites close.

Paul Grafton said: “It is a shame that it has come down to industrial action, but Cory has refused to budge. GMB has pushed Cory continually for intervention by ACAS.

“Eventually Cory caved in and agreed to meet with them, but we don’t hold out much hope of a resolution. GMB has announced four days of strikes initially, followed by more frequent dates of action.

“There is a very simple way for all this inconvenience on the general public to be avoided – Cory needs to offer their workers a pay deal that won’t result in them being worse off at the end of each month.”

Cory Environmental Ltd has been contacted for comment.