Strike negotiations might have aided GMB

Strike negotiations may have proved useful for the GMB, after hundreds of binmen walked out.

A pay strike had taken place on December 20th and this was followed by action from about 500 to 600 workers on Thursday.

This came after the suspension of two colleagues after a vehicle was blocked in and prevented from carrying out duties.

Paul Langley, of the GMB, told the BBC: "We had a phone call saying that our dustmen, Birmingham City Council and our colleagues, were being suspended for an incident that happened with agency staff."

He added the employees are now back at work.

The pay dispute is focused on proposals to address a pay gap between male and female colleagues employed by the council which Unite has said amounted to a £4,000 pay cut.

Mark Serwotka, the leader of the Public and Commercial Services Union, recently stated strikes in the spring of next year are "inevitable".