Gravediggers call off Rotherham strike

The workers’ union UNISON claimed victory after contractors Glendale Managed Services cancelled its redundancy plans in the face of an indefinite strike.

UNISON official Robin Symonds said: “Our members voted to take indefinite strike action in response to the unnecessary redundancies that Glendale announced.

“The company has seen sense and has scrapped the redundancies.

“This is clearly good news all round. The gravediggers do an extremely important job, often in poor conditions for low pay.

“The last thing they wanted was to have to take strike action, but they realised that the stakes were high and their jobs were on the line.  

 “We are pleased that there will be no disruption to the service and that no jobs will now be lost.”

Glendale employs a team of 12 groundsmen to dig graves and maintain the grounds of the council’s cemeteries and crematorium. The company was proposing a 25 per cent reduction in the workforce.

UNISON balloted its members over the dispute with 87.5 per cent voting for strike action with a 100 per cent turnout.

The company entered into a 30-day consultation period last month when it told employees that it would have to make three people redundant because of a reduction of £104,000 in the funding received from Dignity, the company responsible for running Rotherham Borough Council’s bereavement services.  

But UNISON later revealed that Dignity had told the union that Glendale’s claim that their funding was to be cut by £104,000 was “inaccurate” and that there had been no suggestion of anything approaching it.

At the time of the strike vote Glendale said it was continuing talks to avoid industrial action.