News broke on Monday that a ballot of GMB members of Amey, the Isle of Wight’s waste contractor, have voted in favour of strike action.
Amey and Isle of Wight council later that day expressed their disappointment at the decision and the contractor, who have been informed that operatives and drivers will walk out on Monday 13th June for two weeks, has now shared these responses below to statements made by the GMB Union.
GMB: These are key workers who were working throughout the pandemic and are now looking for some recognition of that.
An Amey spokesperson said,
“Amey is a responsible business and proud of its role providing critical public services throughout the pandemic. Amey and the Isle of Wight Council worked closely to maintain delivery of services on the Island, while protecting our key workers.
“The safety of employees and the communities we serve will always be Amey’s priority. During the pandemic we complied with the government’s guidance on managing the risk of Covid-19, while working closely with our people, and clients, to continually review health and safety protocols. We also provided all necessary protective equipment and implemented robust social distancing measures including workplace bubbles across our operations to ensure the safety of our people and the communities we serve.
“We were also committed to providing full pay for any employee who was unable to work or in self-isolation due to coronavirus related illness. The 1 April 2022 pay increase of 4.21%, is in line with our pay agreements elsewhere and recognises the dedication seen from employees during the pandemic.”
GMB: If Amey agree to get around the table with GMB and put together a pay deal that properly reflects the rising costs of food, fuel and household bills, there won’t be any need for a strike.
An Amey spokesperson said,
“Amey have confirmed with the GMB union the pay increase of 4.21%, in line with the UK and current pay conditions on the Isle of Wight contract.
“Amey will continue to engage directly with their employees to discuss their concerns to come to an amicable resolution and avert the need for industrial action.”
GMB: Amey has and continues to make two mistakes, the first is they are ignoring their own employee’s choice of the GMB union to represent their pay claim, as regardless of any disputed recognition status between us, GMB are not going away, and their staff have backed GMB to take forward their pay claim.
An Amey spokesperson said,
“Currently just under half of the Isle of Wight waste workforce are members of the GMB union. From this 77% of members participated with fewer making the decision for industrial action.
“Amey has and will continue to engage directly with their employees to discuss their concerns, and to avoid any action.”
GMB: Huge business profits Amey makes from its contract with The Isle of Wight Council, all disappear nationally, yet it’s their workers who all live on the Island, who if they get a decent and fair pay rise will spend that pay increase locally in shops and business based on the island subsequently boosting the local economy.
An Amey spokesperson said,
“Amey works closely with the Isle of Wight Council to deliver value for money, is committed to the community it serves, and in making sure its employees are recognised, as seen in the April 2022 pay rise, which is in line with rises given elsewhere across the UK and supports the cost of living on the Island.
“Amey have invested strongly into this project and continues to cover all the costs associated with the construction of new infrastructure on the Island, this contract is still in the investment phase and GMB are simply wrong in suggesting profits have been extracted or distributed.
“Despite this, Amey is committed to its people and salaries have increased by 27% (ahead of inflation) since the contract started operation. Amey uses a local supply chain and have supported local businesses since starting operations in 2015.”
GMB: Right now, this strike is going to happen, but it can be avoided if Amey were to seek to enter meaningful talks with the GMB to resolve the current pay issue, if not though all consequences regarding the island kerbside refuse and recycling collections and any effect on the upcoming Isle of Wight Festival lies solely with them.
An Amey spokesperson said,
“Even though we have received confirmation from the GMB union regarding the decision towards industrial action from its members, we will continue to engage with all our Isle of Wight employees to avoid this action.
“We are working with the council to make sure there is minimal impact to all our waste services across the Island. HWRCs will also continue to remain open, where household waste and recycling waste can be brought. With regards to household waste collections, we will prioritise household general waste, food waste and garden waste but we emphasise our aim is to keep any impact to a minimum.”
Image: raver_mikey under CC BY 2.0
