Oxfordshire council staff strike

Union members set up a picket outside County Hall in Oxford

Council workers in Oxfordshire are staging the second day of a strike over pay, hitting services such as schools, libraries and rubbish collections.

At least 500,000 staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are expected to join the second day of the 48-hour action, Unison and Unite say.

Other town hall services across the county are also affected by the action, which began at midnight.

South Oxfordshire and Cherwell councils are unaffected as pay is set locally.

West Oxfordshire Council said it did not have enough union members to make any impact.

Vale of White Horse District Council said it was not expecting any disruption.

But in Oxford, the Central Library, Abingdon Library, Kennington Library and Wallingford Library are all affected.

The Town Hall in Oxford is open from 0800 to 1700 BST on both days, but with a reduced service.

Ferry Sports Centre and Blackbird Leys Pool are closed on both days with Hinksey Pool shut between 1400 and 2000 BST for the duration of the strike.

Ten schools are either closed or partially shut - parents should contact schools directly, the county council said.

Locally, union representatives, employees and management, have worked hard to achieve and maintain good relations Oxford City Council spokesman Is your council hit by the strike? Send us your comments

No rubbish collections are taking place across Oxford on either strike day.

Crews will be taking Wednesday's collection on Friday and Saturday, with Thursday's collection now due to be picked up on Saturday and Monday.

Green boxes due to be collected on either of the two days are not being picked up until the next collection date.

Garden waste will be collected a week later.

All public toilets across Oxford are closed on both days and the dog warden and pest control services are also unavailable.

The Museum of Oxford is shut on both days.

A spokesman for Oxford City Council said: "The council respects every employee's right to take action if they disagree with the national employers' offer.

"Locally, union representatives, employees and management, have worked hard to achieve and maintain good relations.

"It is the council's aspiration to achieve an Oxford Living Wage of a minimum of £7 per hour for employees."

The unions are protesting at pay deals which they say are below the rate of inflation and would mean an effective pay cut for their members.

Members rejected a 2.45% pay offer and are asking for a rise of 6%, or 50p an hour.

The unions said 500,000 members walked out on the first day, but employers put the number at 100,000.