The council is running out of time to prevent an all-out strike that could potentially hit several important services during lockdown.
The ongoing dispute between Brighton and Hove City Council and the GMB union is linked to the insourcing of the housing repairs and maintenance service. It has escalated and is now at a tipping point.
The union first served notice of industrial action over the conditions being offered to staff being insourced back in July – and staff went on strike for a week from Monday 7 September.
With the dispute still not resolved, the scope of industrial action has now been widened and the GMB is considering all-out action across the council services that it influences.
An all-out strike would affect services such as Cityclean’s rubbish and recycling collections as well as the housing repairs and maintenance service.
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Protecting council services during lockdown
My first consideration is the residents of the city who rely on council services being delivered.
The council has a responsibility to the city to properly run the services that residents rely on.
This has never been more important than right now – as we prepare for a second lockdown in Brighton and Hove.
An all-out strike, which is now clearly on the cards, will affect us all but particularly the vulnerable. There is a moral duty to avoid it.
Tenants of council houses, some of whom are in self-isolation, are already facing unacceptable waiting times for essential repairs as a result of the failures of this council.
One resident gave an example of waiting for an asbestos removal job from her roof to be completed.
Across the city’s 11,000-plus council homes, the backlog of repairs has now risen to 3,204, with 160 empty properties awaiting refurbishment before they can be let to anyone on the waiting list.
The council estimates it will take at least 12 months to clear this backlog – and this is before any new industrial action is taken into account.
The council, by not resolving this dispute, are letting down the thousands of people that rely on the city for their accommodation – including many vulnerable people.
There needs to be much greater impetus to resolve this dispute so the council can start the task of clearing the waiting list for repairs.
Councillor Steve Bell is the leader of the Conservative group on Brighton and Hove City Council.
One cannot but help recall the time in 2013 when the GMB held the place to ransom when steps were taken to refute its attempt to continue the situation by which its members were paid not to work the full tally of weekly hours. This went against all Equalities legislation, and, if not stopped, would have brought claims by other workers that would have bankrupted Hove and Brighton. The dismal thing is that the Council lawyers said that this central fact could not be publicised as it would upset the GMB. The lesson of which is that the GMB over-estimates its clout.
Area panels state there is a six month backlog. So many errors in this opinion piece and concerning considering steve is also on the housing committee!
Ive long suspected intentional sabotage. Tories wanted this to be a headache so the service goes to their mates.
The quality of the work was not amazing from Mears I would have put them all on trials tbh, this is about what is best for tenants.
Still too many unanswered questions with little detail, i am on the fence with this one. Always back worker action, just think in this current climate its quite disgraceful.