Coventry bin strike will continue until summer after refuse collectors vote

Bin collections in Coventry will face disruption until the summer.

It's after HGV drivers voted for further industrial action - Unite the Union said 94% of its members in Coventry who took part in the ballot.

The strike began at the end of January following a dispute over pay with the city council.

HGV drivers in the city are paid between £11.49 and £14.37 an hour - but have said this is not enough, and that pay should increase, especially in light of the cost of living crisis.

Coventry City Council has said it made an offer to increase the lowest rate of pay so that drivers start on at least £12.50 an hour, but claims this was rebuffed.

The strikes will restart on March 28 and run through the spring, including during the local elections in May, when 18 of Coventry's councillors will be elected.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said a "catalogue of failures" by the council is why the strike will continue.

She said: "The dispute could have been easily settled with capable council leaders. Instead, councillors have scandalously squandered millions and refused to attend a single meeting with Unite."

To combat the disruption the council has hired a private company to deal with refuse collection.

They say they are one highest paying local authorities in the West Midlands.