The leader of Unite has described Angela Rayner’s behaviour during recent bin strikes as “totally and utterly abhorrent” as tensions ramp up between the government and Labour’s biggest union backers.
General secretary Sharon Graham hit out at the deputy prime minister after the union voted to suspend her in a row over how the Labour-run council in Birmingham treated striking bin workers.
She signalled the union could end its long affiliation with Labour after Unite members also voted to “re-examine” their relationship with the party, saying the £1.5m it pays is “hard to justify’”.
But allies of Ms Rayner hit back accusing Ms Graham of not denying that her union had voted to suspend a membership that no longer existed.
On Friday Ms Rayner made clear she would not be “pushed around” by the union.
Unite, one of Labour’s biggest financial backers, claims fire and rehire tactics have been deployed against striking workers, who are taking industrial action in a dispute over pay and job conditions. The action left streets in Birmingham piled high with rubbish.
In a fresh attack on Saturday, Ms Graham told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Angela Rayner refuses to get involved, and she is directly aiding and abetting the fire and rehire of these bin workers, it is totally and utterly abhorrent.”
The general secretary said Ms Rayner had been “a member of our union for over 10 years”. Allies of Ms Rayner have said she resigned from Unite in April.
Ms Graham said the politician may well have done “Houdini act” in recent months by trying to leave the union, but added: “She was very clearly a member when she asked us to give her £10,000 for the election. And on our system, obviously we go by quarters, so up to the March quarter.”
She added: “Now, if she has over the last couple of weeks, because she’s seen the mood music, because this isn’t the first time that we’ve discussed that we’re not happy with what’s going on, then she may well have done that.”
Ms Graham hinted that the union may have to rethink its relationship with Labour, adding that Unite members have to see that the fee to affiliate with the party is “worth something”.
“At this present moment in time, it is hard to justify it, if I’m being honest,” she continued.
“Would that money be better spent on frontline services for my members? But the decision will be a serious decision. It’s not a rash decision.”
Such a decision would go to a rules conference of the union, she said, adding that she was facing pressure to hold an emergency conference “which would mean we would disaffiliate”.
She added: “If it was me and I had a major backer like Unite, that has everyday people in it – remember, this was a vote of members at the parliament of our union – that were saying that we don’t believe that Labour defends workers in the way that we thought they would, we believe that they’re making the wrong decisions, I would be concerned about that.”
The escalation comes days after several other unions, including the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), piled pressure on the government to avoid more cuts by bringing in a wealth tax.
Meanwhile, other unions have said they have major concerns that the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, may be planning a tax raid on public sector pension funds.
Ms Rayner’s allies have hit back at the criticism, pointing out that Unite has singled out the leading cabinet minister who has pushed the government to the left on workers’ rights and, in the last fortnight, to abandon plans to slash disability benefits.
A Labour source said on Friday: “Angela’s not interested in silly stunts, she’s interested in changing workers’ lives. Unite rejected a deal in Birmingham, and their demands would have undermined equal pay, discriminating against female workers. Angela won’t be pushed around, and she quit Unite some months ago.”
The union began the strike after alleging that the council’s decision to remove waste recycling and collection officer roles would mean 170 workers would face losing up to £8,000 a year.
On Wednesday, talks to end the dispute broke down as Birmingham City Council announced it had reached the “absolute limit” of what it could offer to resolve the strike.
