Housing repairs staff are to go on strike from Monday (7 September) after talks broke down between their union and the council today (Thursday 3 September).
The GMB union is planning a five-day strike in a dispute over pay and conditions.
The staff work for Brighton and Hove City Council after being brought “in house” from contractor Mears earlier this year, with the existing dispute unresolved.
The union said: “Green council leader Phélim Mac Cafferty today has supported his officers in Brighton and Hove to cut the salary of housing repair services staff by £4,000 a year and not to give them sick pay and stop all negotiations with the GMB.”
Councillor Steve Bell, leader of the Conservative group, said: “Some of the poorest people in our city rely on a well-run housing portfolio and that is not what they are getting from Labour or the Greens.
“This strike will just make the wait faced by many for basic repairs longer.
“When the Greens seized power a few weeks ago, we warned that it could mean a return to the rolling strikes that characterised the last Green administration – and it has taken only a few weeks for the strikes to begin once again.
“Residents remember the rubbish strikes that caused international embarrassment to the city.
“Now it is the poorest people requiring urgent maintenance to their houses that will suffer from this new strike.
“As we find ourselves in this situation because of only a few people, we would urge the Green administration to get round the table and stop this strike from happening as there is still time to prevent this.
“The Greens must now take responsibility for this mess and avert this strike.”
He said that the union balloted for strike action after accusing the previous Labour administration of breaking its promise over pay and conditions when it brought the housing repairs service in house.
GMB branch secretary said: “My door remains open over the coming days for any further discussions you wish to have to attempt to resolve the dispute.”
Former Conservative council leader Mary Mears, who now speaks for her party on housing, said that tenants and leaseholders were paying an enormous price for Labour and the Greens’ decision to bring housing repairs “in house”.
Councillor Mears said: “Labour’s decision to bring housing repairs in house has been a colossal failure.
“It already has cost millions of pounds in set-up costs – a cost which has ultimately been paid by the rent contributions of tenants and leaseholders to the Housing Revenue Account (HRA).
“The HRA is meant to be used for repairs to tenants’ and leaseholders’ council properties but millions of pounds has been spent on the set-up costs for this folly. It is a scandal.
“Now, if this wasn’t bad enough, there is another cost as this strike will increase waiting lists for basic maintenance.
“There are many people in the city on waiting lists for basic maintenance on their properties that this strike will impact.
“We have heard examples of people waiting to get asbestos removed from their council property.
“Maintenance jobs will now be pushed back – all because of a policy failure by Labour and the Greens.
“As a former council Leader, I think it is important to point out that there were no strikes under the last four-year Conservative administration at all.
“This is because the Conservatives worked with the departments along with the unions to ensure the proper running of our city.
“There is a better way than the constant chaos Labour and Greens bring to running our city.”
Punch and Judy politics….
Hard to see past political smokescreens & verbal flashbangs…..