Rubbish is piling up on the streets of Haringey as strike action by the borough's refuse collectors continues into its third week - with no end in sight.

The council's waste management company, Haringey Accord, has failed to reach an agreement with 48 of it employees - who are members of the Transport and General Workers' Union (TGWU) - since they began the strike over working arrangements last Monday.

Chico Pacheco, the chairman of Park Avenue South Residents Association, said: "It is not just piling up, it is smelling. We are getting flies, flying ants and rats."

David Winskill, a Liberal Democrat councillor for Crouch End, said dustbins in Harringay were "grossly overflowing".

"The smell was starting to get really bad and there were flies everywhere. In Crouch End, some bins are overflowing, food is starting to rot and in some streets rubbish is building up at a monumental rate."

A Haringey Council spokesman said: "The council's primary concern is residents and the service they receive from Accord. Accord is well aware of its obligations under the contract it has with the council and rubbish will not be allowed to pile up across the borough."

Temporary agency staff will now be brought in and trained to cover the striking workers.

The action was taken in response to changes made by Accord - new rotas and the removal of two vehicles. This created additional work for refuse crews, which they feel forced them to work over and above safety levels.

Accord claims that the disruption to the service will affect 95,000 residents but neither side can predict when the strike is likely to end.

An Accord spokesman said: "The strike is indefinite. We have done everything we believe reasonable to avoid a strike in the first place. We do want this dispute to be resolved as quickly and as amicably as possible as we cannot allow this strike to continue."

Since the strike began, volunteers from Islington and Slough Accord have helped with refuse collection from the borough's high streets, but no door-to-door collections are taking place.

The TGWU's regional industrial organiser, Paul Fawcett, said: "Our members resolve is as strong as ever." He added that a telephone conversation with Accord's general manager, Doug Taylor, on Tuesday had failed to resolve the dispute.

A further meeting between both sides took place yesterday, but no agreement was made.

Mr Fawcett now believes the situation could worsen as Accord's road sweepers are also considering strike action.

"It's going to escalate now as road sweepers have asked us to reballot them on industrial action due to service cuts and temporary work staff being brought in," he said.

Accord initially offered its refuse collectors £1,450 each to discourage them from the strike - and this week upped the offer by £400 - on the condition that the strike was abandoned. But Union members turned the offer down and branded it an insult'.

Mr Fawcett added: "When I put that to our members, they said they can take it away. It's an insult to start throwing money at us over a health and safety issue.

"The problem is, if our members had accepted that money and gone back to work, they wouldn't be able to keep up the extra work in a day, so would therefore be forced to cut

  • For further information on how the industrial action affects you and advice on waste disposal and recycling please call the council on 020 8885 7700.