Refuse collection crews and street cleaners refused to start work on Monday on health and safety grounds after Sita Suez brought in new measures to stop using agency staff to cover for sick leave and holidays.

The measures were among a number proposed by Sita last week including bringing all staff contracts into line, reducing overtime pay and making bank holiday working except Christmas Day and Boxing Day compulsory.

But workers refused go out until a risk assessment had been carried out, and union Unison is checking whether the changes are legal.

Crews eventually began work after midday after Sita agreed to reinstate agency staff until a health and safety assessment had taken place.

Branch secretary Andrew Crump did not rule out industrial action, but stressed Monday's action was not a strike.

He criticised Sita Suez for bringing in the change before consultation with staff had been completed, saying the situation had not been handled in the best way.

Mr Crump stressed that the workers were not public sector employees but staff employed by a private sector company and had not had a pay rise for two years.

He added: "The staff were raising health and safety concerns about risk assessments because Sita has a duty of care to protect the workforce.
"We have to have meanigful negotiation with management.

We are trying to make sure the company goes through the correct legal process."

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Sita Suez was awarded the contract for street cleaning and refuse and recycling collection in January 2008 and began in April that year.

One staff member, who did not wish to be named, claimed Sita had brought in the measures because it was losing money after making too low a bid.

He described the company's act in stopping agency workers as an attempt to bring the change in through the back door and condemned the other proposals.

He said: "It is piling extra work on us and cutting our wages. Overtime gives you a living wage. By cutting that it will put a lot of these lads on the poverty line."

A Unison representative was due to meet Sita Suez managers yesterday (Thursday) to discuss the changes. Sita UK contract manager Matthew Canning said the company aimed to catch up on its collections by the end of Friday.

He added: "On Monday a number of staff at our Warwick depot refused to work as a result of a dispute over the use of agency staff to cover holiday and sickness.

"We have agreed with the staff involved that for the time being we will continue to use agency staff as part of the services and they have now gone back to work.

"However, it is still our intention to stop the use of agency staff and we will continue to involve our team through negotiations with the union."