Waste collection workers are going on strike for another two weeks in Cumbria.

GMB union members employed by Westmorland and Furness Council contractor Urbaser voted in favour of extending strike action at the Eden depot, taking the strike to November 13.

A spokesperson from Westmorland and Furness Council spoke of 'disappointment' that negotiations on a pay deal between the union and the contractor haven’t been resolved.

They added: “This action has resulted in some disruption to our contracted waste and environmental services and we appreciate that this has been frustrating for our residents in the Eden locality.

“The advice to residents in the Eden locality remains to continue putting out your blue bags for collection on your scheduled collection day.

“Urbaser have informed us that they are prioritising services to ensure collections of residual waste (blue bag) during the industrial action.

“In the event that your bag is not collected by the end of the day, if it's safe to do so, kindly leave it in its place, and the aim is to have it collected within 24 hours, or as soon as possible.

“Where no replacement sacks have been left, residents can place out suitable alternatives during the period of the strike.

“Please note that this industrial action does not impact recycling or green waste collections in the Eden area as these are provided under a different contract.

“The action also does not impact waste, recycling or green waste collections in the Barrow or South Lakeland areas of Westmorland and Furness.

“Council-operated recycling ‘Bring Sites’ and Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) will continue to open and operate as normal during the period of industrial action.”

Andy Turner, regional operations manager at Urbaser, said: "Urbaser Ltd has been informed by the GMB Union that they intend to extend their strike action at our Eden depot for a further consecutive two weeks. 

“While the strike continues, we remain committed to ensuring minimal disruption to our services and customers. As long as we can deploy our vehicles without any hindrance, we will continue to allocate resources on a daily basis. Consequently, our guidance to residents remains the same: please continue to place your blue bags out for collection according to your usual schedule.

"In the event that your bag is not collected by the end of the day, if it's safe to do so, kindly leave it in its place, and we will aim to have it collected the following day.

“We would like to offer residents our reassurance that we are making every possible effort to reinitiate productive conversations with the GMB Union, and we extend our sincere thanks to residents for their continued patience.”