Birmingham’s bin strike continues as council workers reject the latest pay offer. Rubbish piles remain on the streets, public health concerns are growing, and both sides of the dispute appear no closer to agreement. Richard Gullick reports for Local TV Birmingham and BirminghamWorld.
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00:00Bin bag, vermin and rising tensions. The latest chapter in Birmingham's waste crisis sees striking workers reject the City Council's latest offer.
00:12According to Unite, the vote was near unanimous. The council called it disappointing.
00:17But workers say the deal still fails to address a key issue. Cuts of up to £8,000 a year for 200 drivers.
00:25The route of the row lies in the removal of a role the union says was vital for health and safety, waste recycling and collection officers.
00:33Without it, they argue, hundreds face not just pay cuts but fewer chances of progressing in the job.
00:40The council insists those affected have been offered other roles or training. Unite says that's not the point.
00:46Meanwhile, Birmingham streets are telling their own story. Mountains of waste have attracted rats, fly tippers and no shortage of complaints.
00:55One man lost his cart of rodents chewing through the wiring. Others are finding dead animals in parks.
01:01Friends of Spark Green Park say enough's enough. It's becoming a risk to public health.
01:06Over 11,000 tonnes of rubbish have now been cleared and more is being shifted with help from neighbouring councils and even military planners.
01:14But the situation remains tense. The city declared a major incident in March.
01:20And now with the Easter break underway, the pressure is on to make streets safe again.
01:25For many, this isn't just about pay. It's about how decisions made in back rooms pile up, quite literally, on the streets of the city.
01:33With negotiations at a standstill, the mess on the ground reflects a much deeper one at the top.
01:43The western line is at the front.
01:44The people will be taken care of.
01:45The citizens will be taken out of a world.
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01:50The people will be taken out of a world.
01:53But the people will be taken out of the rain.
01:55The local home is taken out of the place in the man's house.
01:57The people think of the lights, the people like the people like the people who celebrate the land.
01:59The people of the Mexico City City are underlie 158.