Councillor Martynas Cekavicius, Havering's Cabinet Member for Public Realm, said:
"Havering Council is extremely disappointed that planned industrial action by Unite, involving waste collection staff is set to go ahead from 26 to 30 October 2026.
The Council’s position has been clear from the outset and this week we have continued to work with both FCC and Unite, encouraging them to reach a negotiated settlement.
FCC has a contractual obligation to collect waste across the Borough, and has contingency plans in place to minimise disruption to residents.
Naturally, it is likely that some disruption will occur, and we will continue to hold FCC to account for the delivery of its contractual services and will regularly monitor the impact of any industrial action.
We will provide regular updates to residents via the Council’s regular channels.
Our priority remains ensuring residents receive the waste and recycling services they expect, deserve, and pay for.
"This is an unprecedented situation, and we apologise in advance to all residents who will be affected.
We urge FCC and Unite to redouble their efforts to reach an agreement and bring this dispute to an end, and we remain hopeful that such an agreement can be reached as soon as possible."
Advice for residents
- FCC have made efforts to minimise disruption to Havering residents next week.
- They have secured staff from other municipal contracts, as well as agencies, to ensure that all kerbside collections will proceed as planned, and have sourced hire vehicles to enable other work to be caught up as quickly as possible.
- As it stands, the expectation is that all kerbside recycling and waste bags will be collected as scheduled, as well as clinical waste and bulky waste.
- There is likely to be some disruption to collections of garden waste and communal bins.
- Havering staff have been working behind the scenes to ensure that colleagues in Housing are kept updated, and to identify any locations that may need to be prioritised due to local arrangements, such as where rubbish chutes are in use.
- FCC will be deploying resource next weekend to help catch up with any outstanding work, and Havering's Waste Team have been in contact with the East London Waste Authority to confirm weekend tipping arrangements.
- Residents are instructed to present their waste as planned, and to continue checking the website for updates.
- Any work not completed will be published on the website on a daily basis, so that residents can check the status of their collections, with assurances that FCC are aware of any outstanding locations and will get to them as soon as possible.