Britain’s second-largest city has declared a “major incident” after a sanitation worker strike left over 17,000 tons of uncollected garbage on the curbside. “It’s regrettable that we have had to take this step, but we cannot tolerate a situation that is causing harm and distress to communities across Birmingham,” John Cotton, leader of Birmingham city council, said in a statement. Photos taken by Reuters in Birmingham this month show mounds of uncollected trash overflowing from collection bins and dumpsters. The dispute between the city and its garbage collectors stretches back to December 2024, when the trade group Unite the Union announced that collectors would strike in 2025 against overpay cuts, a ban on overtime, and the council’s elimination of a waste collection role. The city said in a statement on March 28 that “all workers have been offered alternative employment at the same pay, driver training or voluntary redundancy,” and…
