Latest news with #SimonEllis
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Bin collection strikes in Wrexham amid pay and hours dispute
Refuse workers in Wrexham will be striking this month in a dispute over working patterns and reduced of the Unite union who work in the street scene operation team at Wrexham council are pushing back against changes to overtime hours which see them given compulsory Saturday strikes, voted for by 71% of about 100 workers involved in the dispute, will take place on 23 and 30 August, 6, 13, 20 and 27 September, 4, 11, 18, and 25 October and 1, 8 and 14 union said the action was "completely [the council's] fault" for "targeting lower paid staff".Wrexham council has been contacted for comment. The dispute comes after Wrexham council changed the way workers were given staff were given additional days off over Christmas and could volunteer to work the council later introduced compulsory Saturday work and threatened workers with disciplinary action if they do not attend, Unite said, adding the move was taken without any consultation with workers or the changes also mean Unite members' pay will be reduced for overtime, following several years of below inflation pay rises as well as this year's below-inflation offer to local authority workers of 3.2 %, the union regional officer Simon Ellis said: "We know residents of Wrexham will be concerned about bin strikes, but this is completely the fault of the local council and their unacceptable behaviour towards their staff."Our hardworking members are not asking for extra pay, this dispute is all about protecting their agreed overtime remuneration and working hours."Wrexham council cannot keep targeting lower paid staff and must roll back on these unfair plans and come back to the table."
North Wales Live
2 days ago
- Business
- North Wales Live
Four months of 'extremely disruptive' bin strikes to take place in North Wales county
Household rubbish collectors have voted for a series of bin strikes in Wrexham. An initial 13 days of industrial action have been pledged with the possibility of more over the Christmas holidays. The Unite union said the strike action is over 'salary reductions' and changes to working patterns. It claimed Wrexham Council had 'behaved disgracefully' in pushing through the changes and that the looming industrial action was 'completely their fault'. In a vote, 71% of the around 100 affected Unite members voted to strike, with non-collections accompanied by an overtime ban. Unite said that, should the dispute remain unresolved, its members were also considering further action over Christmas when more rubbish is usually collected. Wrexham Council said it was 'extremely disappointed' with the union's stance following 'prolonged consultation' over cost-saving measures needed to ensure the local authority remained financially solvent. The planned strike days are as follows: August 23 and 30 September, 6, 13, 20 and 27 October 4, 11, 18, and 25 November 1, 8 and 14 Those taking part are Unite members who work in the street scene operation team at Wrexham Council. As well as refuse workers, the vote affected other street scene staff working in parks, gardens and highways. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now Unite regional officer Simon Ellis said the strikes could be "extremely disruptive". He added: 'We know residents of Wrexham will be concerned about bin strikes, but this is completely the fault of the local council and their unacceptable behaviour towards their staff. 'Our hardworking members are not asking for extra pay, this dispute is all about protecting their agreed overtime renumeration and working hours. Wrexham Council cannot keep targeting lower paid staff and must roll back on these unfair plans and come back to the table.' The dispute centres on planned changed to overtime arrangements over Christmas. Previously, staff were given extra days off over the holiday period but they could volunteer to work overtime. Unite said staff will now have to compulsorily work Saturdays and will be threatened with disciplinary action if they do not attend. The changes, designed to save £100,000, will see every worker losing the equivalent of half a day's pay, said the union. Effectively, the decision will 'extend the working week without agreement', said Unite general secretary Sharon Graham. She added: 'No worker should ever be expected to accept forced-through changes to their working patterns or to lose out on hard-earned pay. 'Wrexham Council has behaved disgracefully and any industrial action is completely their fault. Unite will always fully support our members who are looking to protect their pay and workplace conditions all the way.' As well as cutting overtime payments, Unite said affected workers have 'already endured years of below-inflation pay rises'. It said the local authority's across-the-board 3.2% rise will be 'almost wiped out' due to the loss of overtime. Ms Graham pointed out the lowest paid street scene staff earn £25,583. She said all seven chief officers at Wrexham Council are paid more than £100,000-a-year. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox Council's position Wrexham Council was approached for a comment. Previously, the local authority's Interim Chief Executive, Alwyn Jones, said lengthy consultations were undertaken as part of the annual budget-setting process in the 2024/25 financial year. Cost-cutting measures were taking place against a 'difficult financial position' with Wrexham's residents facing ever increasing Council Tax bills to plug budget gaps and protect public services. He said: 'The council embarked on an extensive transformation programme in an attempt to negotiate the difficult decisions that are required to ensure we remain financially solvent. All of the recognised trade unions have been party to consultation on the detail of the budget-savings proposals. 'This particular saving, relating to switching refuse collections to Saturdays rather than Bank Holidays, brings in over £100k of savings. The proposal has been through all of the council's processes and committee cycles and consultation processes. 'The department also undertook extensive consultation with the workforce on the proposals with only 19 individual responses amongst a workforce of 245 employees disagreeing with the plans. 'Wrexham County Borough Council has worked hard to save jobs and continue to support in-house delivery of public services especially these frontline services.'
Leader Live
2 days ago
- Business
- Leader Live
Bin strikes to go ahead in Wrexham, unite confirms
Last month, the Leader reported that over 100 Unite union members at Wrexham Council were being balloted with regards to industrial action. Now they have confirmed that Unite members who work in the Street Scene operation team at Wrexham Council will strike from this month. Street Scene operators include refuse workers as well as those working on parks, gardens and highways. Unite the Union says the strikes are taking place over 'changes to working patterns' and 'salary reductions' imposed by Wrexham Council. They say the dispute comes after Wrexham Council 'changed the way workers in this team were given overtime' adding that, previously, staff in this team were given additional days off over Christmas and could volunteer to work overtime. Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary, said: "No worker should ever be expected to accept forced-through changes to their working patterns or to lose out on hard-earned pay. "Wrexham Council has behaved disgracefully and any industrial action is completely their fault. Unite will always fully support our members who are looking to protect their pay and workplace conditions all the way." Unite believe this is a choice by the employer to extend the working week without agreement and claim it means every worker would lose half a day's pay every bank holiday. Unite said: "The affected workers have already endured years of below inflation pay rises as well as this year's below-inflation offer to local authority workers of 3.2 per cent which will be almost wiped out due to the changes. "Meanwhile, all seven chief officers at Wrexham Council are paid over £100,000 a year while the lowest paid workers on the street scene operation team earn £25,583. Losses incurred from the changes to working patterns mean this year's local authority pay rise is worth a third less in real terms to these members." After 71 per cent of the around 100 affected members in the dispute voted to take action, strikes will take place on: An overtime ban will also be in place during this time. Should the dispute remain unresolved, Unite members are also considering further action to take place over Christmas, when households usually have more rubbish needing to be removed than usual. Simon Ellis, Unite regional officer, said: "We know residents of Wrexham will be concerned about bin strikes, but this is completely the fault of the local council and their unacceptable behaviour towards their staff. "Our hardworking members are not asking for extra pay, this dispute is all about protecting their agreed overtime renumeration and working hours. Wrexham Council cannot keep targeting lower paid staff and must roll back on these unfair plans and come back to the table." Wrexham Council has been approached for a response. Previously, Alwyn Jones, Wrexham Council's interim chief executive said they were "extremely disappointed" to see Unite members being balloted over strike action "especially after the lengthy and prolonged consultation the organisation undertook as part of the annual budget setting process in the 2024/25 financial year." He added: "It is important to note that given the difficult financial position public services find themselves in, the public in Wrexham have and continue to be faced with ever increasing Council Tax bills plugging gaps in finances across the council area and protecting public service delivery. "The council embarked on an extensive transformation programme in an attempt to negotiate the difficult decisions that are required to ensure we remain financially solvent. All of the recognised trade unions have been party to consultation on the detail of the budget savings proposals. TOP STORIES TODAY "This particular saving, relating to switching refuse collections to Saturdays rather than Bank holidays brings in over £100k of savings. The proposal has been through all of the council's processes and committee cycles and consultation processes. "The department also undertook extensive consultation with the workforce on the proposals with only 19 individual responses amongst a workforce of 245 employees disagreeing with the plans. "Wrexham County Borough Council has worked hard to save jobs and continue to support in-house delivery of public services especially these frontline services. We remain committed to this principle and are very upset that this trade union has chosen to take this action and potentially put the public in the County Borough through another period of unnecessary service disruption."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Winners at Catterick Golf Club's Ladies' Invitation Day
Catterick Golf Club's Ladies' Invitation Day was an enjoyable event with refreshments at the Halfway House hosted by Lady Captain Jude Stamp and a two-course meal after the game. The longest drive on the first hole was won by Vicky Iveson. Sandra Jones won nearest the pin in two shots at the 17th. Jackie Barker and her partner Rebecca Ellis won the competition with 43 pts. Second were Sue Dines and Chris Rushworth, third were Beryl Murray and Ainsley Morgan. The Anne Moore trophy, a 4BBB greensome competition sponsored by Anne, was won by Beryl Murray and Wendy Parr with a net 63. Second were Davina Matthews and Jude Stamp with a net 65, and third were Sandra Jones and Marion Palmer with a net 69. Seniors Open stableford: 1st Ed Glass and Ken Mills 50 pts, 2nd Julian Wade and Jeremy Wade 48 pts, 3rd P Cook and M Kelly 46 pts. Simon Ellis won the Div 1 August medal with a net 69, 2nd Dex Olmert net 73, 3rd Gavin Mann net 74. Div 2: 1st Raja Dura net 71, 2nd Ian Owen net 73, 3rd Cliff Addison net 73. Div 3: 1st Tom Ellis net 69, 2nd Krishna Singh net 71, 3rd David Hanson net 71.
Leader Live
18-07-2025
- Business
- Leader Live
Wrexham could be set for bin strikes as workers balloted
The union says the dispute comes after Wrexham Council changed the way workers in the Street Scene operation team were given overtime. Street Scene operators include refuse workers as well as those working on parks, gardens and highways. A Unite union spokesperson claims: "Previously, they were given additional days off over Christmas and can volunteer to work overtime. However, the council forced through changes without any consultation with workers or Unite, which means they now have to compulsorily work Saturdays. "This is a choice by the employer to extend the working week without agreement and means every worker would lose half a day's pay." Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary said: "The way Wrexham Council has attempted to force through these changes to working patterns, without any negotiations, is nothing short of a disgrace. "Unite will always fight to protect our members' conditions at work and they will have our full support throughout this dispute." The union claims the changes implemented by Wrexham Council will also see Unite members' pay reduced for overtime without agreement with workers or any negotiations with Unite. The union also claims that affected workers have already endured years of below inflation pay rises as well as this year's below-inflation offer of 3.2 per cent. The ballot closes on August 5 and industrial action could take place in late August. Unite members are also considering any potential strike action to take place over Christmas, when households usually have more rubbish needing to be removed than usual. Simon Ellis, Unite regional officer said: "Any bin strike in Wrexham would be extremely disruptive and we know people living in the city will not be pleased to hear about this potential action. "This is an easy dispute to fix, by maintaining our hardworking members' currently-agreed hours and overtime pay and we urge the council to come back to the negotiating table before it is too late." Alwyn Jones, Wrexham Council's interim chief executive said: "We are extremely disappointed to see Unite the Trade Union take this action especially after the lengthy and prolonged consultation the organisation undertook as part of the annual budget setting process in the 2024/25 financial year. "It is important to note that given the difficult financial position public services find themselves in, the public in Wrexham have and continue to be faced with ever increasing Council Tax bills plugging gaps in finances across the council area and protecting public service delivery. TOP STORIES "The council embarked on an extensive transformation programme in an attempt to negotiate the difficult decisions that are required to ensure we remain financially solvent. All of the recognised trade unions have been party to consultation on the detail of the budget savings proposals. "This particular saving, relating to switching refuse collections to Saturdays rather than Bank holidays brings in over £100k of savings. The proposal has been through all of the council's processes and committee cycles and consultation processes. "The department also undertook extensive consultation with the workforce on the proposals with only 19 individual responses amongst a workforce of 245 employees disagreeing with the plans. "Wrexham County Borough Council has worked hard to save jobs and continue to support in-house delivery of public services especially these frontline services. We remain committed to this principle and are very upset that this trade union has chosen to take this action and potentially put the public in the County Borough through another period of unnecessary service disruption."
