Bristol binworkers pay campaign bags award

For years a job with tough conditions and unequal rates of pay across different crews, staff at Bristol’s Waste Management Services got organised and won a better deal.

Local rep Dudley Hackling was at the centre of that campaign – an effort which achieved payrises of 4 to 9% by recruiting over 80% of the employees into UNISON.

Dudley’s work was celebrated at UNISON’s annual Get Active event, where he was awarded the private and voluntary sector organising rep of the year trophy.

Dudley said: “people in contracted services like waste often get a bad deal from employers who want to take advantage of us. My colleagues and I stood up for fairness and won a decent wage. It goes to show what can be achieved if everyone stands together for justice.”