Binmen's £350 festive bonus

A total of 32 bin men will be paid an average of £350 each for clearing the backlog of waste on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

The domestic refuse collection and dry recycling service will operate as normal over Christmas with the exception of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, when services will be suspended.

Collections of green waste in wheelie bins will be suspended from December 21 to January 1 but will recommence on January 4.

Additional collections of domestic waste will be made on December 31 and January 1 for customers missing collections on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Recycling on those days will not be collected until January 7 and 8.

Wolverhampton City Council spokeswoman Julia Corrigan said: "Some additional payments will be made in respect of the clearance of the backlog of refuse on the days where additional collections take place.

Average payments will be in the region of £350 to the 32 staff that work on the domestic collection service." Each council in the West Midlands is making its own arrangements to cover bin collections over the festive period.

Bonuses will not be paid in neighbouring Sandwell. Councillor Mahboob Hussain, cabinet member for neighbourhoods and housing, said: "Normal overtime will be offered. In line with our new Single Status pay and grading system, there will be no Christmas and New Year bonus."

Last year in Sandwell nearly 80 per cent of Sandwell binmen agreed to work without bonuses at Christmas as they could not afford to turn down the overtime.

In 2007 staff picked up up to £1,100 in bonuses and overtime. But last year they were sent letters telling them although they were to be paid overtime, there would be no additional payments. The most anyone could have hoped for was £462.

In Wyre Forest refuse collections will take place as normal on Christmas Eve but there will be no recycling collection. Items to be recycled will instead be picked up on December 31.

There will be no refuse collections or recycling collections on Christmas Day.

There will be no Christmas waste collections in the Lichfield district on Christmas Day, December 28 and January 1.

Those missing Friday collections will get their next normal collection on January 8. The next Monday collection will be on January 4 and Thursday on January 7. The usual blue and black bin collection will also not take place on December 31.