West Dunbartonshire Council (WDC) spent almost £2000 on leaflets advising residents of changes to the festive bin collections before the axing all collections over Christmas and new year in a row with staff over holiday pay, the Lennox can reveal.
Residents whose bins were due to be collected on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day were initially told that they would be emptied that same weekend. However, the council later advised that it would not be uplifting bins until at least January 8.
The council had already slapped information leaflets on thousands of residents’ bins advising of the dates.
The council said the cancelled uplifts were a result of “workforce resource challenges”, with Labour Councillor David McBride, the council’s convener of and spokesperson for Infrastructure, Regeneration & Economic Development, later apologising to residents and admitted a “systematic failure” within the local authority.
Following a Freedom of Information request to West Dunbartonshire Council, the Lennox can reveal that the authority coughed up £1,845 from the public coffers towards the leaflets advising residents of the axed collections.
GMB Scotland, the union representing the waste collection workers, in December told how red-faced council chiefs had been “repeatedly warned” that workers would refuse festive overtime shifts.
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Keir Greenaway, the GMB Scotland’s senior organiser in the public sector, said at that time that WDC wanted to save money by reclassifying up to five days of public holiday as normal leave this year, when special rates of pay will not apply.
Speaking in December, Labour Councillor David McBride, the council’s convener of and spokesperson for Infrastructure, Regeneration & Economic Development, said the last-minute announcement was due to the results of a union ballot, which saw the majority of members who voted deciding against volunteering to work on public holidays.
He said he has now asked the Chief Officer to bring forward alternative solutions so the situation doesn’t happen again.
Independent councillor Jonathon McColl, who quit the SNP last year, this week said that he supports the workers in their dispute with the council.
The Lomond ward councillor said: “Nobody should think ill of our hard working refuse collection staff. My understanding is that goodwill was eroded when the Labour administration failed to ensure staff were properly consulted on changes they have pushed through that directly impact staff’s working patterns.
“Despite this poor treatment, the council, taking them for granted, just expected them to volunteer and help out as usual.
“The staff’s response to this was not only understandable, but completely reasonable and I fully support them; all they want is to be treated fairly.
“The Labour administration and the decisions they’ve taken are responsible for the service disruption we experienced, and the waste of public funds. We can only hope they’ve learned a lesson from this.
“I want to thank our refuse collection staff for the work they have done following Christmas to uplift the excess waste.”
Leven councillor Jim Bollan said that the wasted sum “compounds the attack on workers holidays” by the Labour administration. The West Dunbartonshire Community Party councillor said: “The additional cost to council taxpayers of around £2,000 just compounds the attack on workers holidays by the Labour Council, which is at the heart of the chaos over holiday bin uplifts.
“The knock-on effect of this disastrous decision continues to affect bin uplifts and the increased fly-tipping which continues to blight some of our areas. If Labour go ahead with their plans for a three weekly bin uplift cycle then the consequences we have witnessed could become permanent.”
A West Dunbartonshire Council spokesperson said: “Bin tags are the most cost-effective and efficient way to reach every resident and ensure they are aware of changes to the bin collection schedule.
“On this occasion, workforce resource challenges meant this schedule had to be revised at short notice after the tags were distributed.
“We apologise for any inconvenience and thank residents for their patience.”
The West Dunbartonshire Labour group have been contacted for comment.