THE Labour leader of Edinburgh Council has insisted the city’s bins will be emptied during the festival despite the looming strike from refuse workers.
Councillor Cammy Day did not go into detail about how this would happen but promised that the city would not be “strewn with litter and overflowing bins.”
More than 250 waste workers represented by GMB and Unite are set to walk out for 12 days between August 18 and 30 over a “derisory” 2 per cent wage hike offered by Cosla.
The industrial action comes at the busiest point of the festival season, with the Fringe, the book festival, the art festival, the international festival, the film festival and the TV festival all underway.
Thousands will be in the capital.
Last week, Wendy Dunsmore, Unite industrial officer, said the blame for the situation “lies squarely with Cosla and the Scottish Government who have continued to undervalue and treat council workers with contempt.”
Speaking to BBC Radio Scotland, Cllr Day said ministers needed to step in and help councils fund a pay rise.
He said: “Edinburgh is the lowest-funded council in Scotland and we need the Government to step up to the mark and help stop that.
“So already our teams are planning for if the strike happens, how we will manage it.
“So we won’t have the city strewn with litter and overflowing bins, we will have a plan to resolve that. But ultimately I don’t want the strike to happen.”
He continued: “As soon as the ballot was announced a few weeks back, our office has been working on a plan B for that.”
Cosla leaders met on Friday to discuss the prospect of strike action around Scotland by members of Unite, Unison and the GMB.
The council leaders decided they needed more information and another meeting is due later this week.
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