Kirklees Council has finally come clean over the bin staff walkout.

After complaints from councillors that they were being kept in the dark, an email was sent out on Friday to all 69 members.

It confirms the unfinished rounds were not due to official industrial action.

The unions did not support the November 8 walkout, which the Examiner understands was by two bin crews.

The so-called “wildcat strike” left 4,000 bins in the Holme Valley uncollected.

A memo from Naz Parker, Kirklees Council’s strategic director for economy and infrastructure, has told councillors that Unison was supporting the council’s investigation.

His email confirms there has been no more walkouts and says 99.3% of bins have been collected since the incident.

It does not confirm if those involved have been suspended.

It says: “For clarity, this was not industrial action.

“Employees have, from Tuesday 14th November 2017 onward, been required to work their full hours and start/finish at their place of work at Vine Street until investigations are concluded.

“The action that took place on Wednesday November 8 2017, was not supported by Unite or Unison, it was led by a small proportion of the workforce themselves.

“We do not envisage any further such action from the workforce or any disruptions to bin collections, other than the normal day to day operational issues that occur.

“For example, missed bins earlier this week were caused by a vehicle breakdown.”

Earlier this week, Kirklees Unison boss Paul Holmes told the Examiner that bin collection workers felt the rounds weren’t “do-able.”

In 2015 Kirklees Council changed the system to cram the whole borough’s collections into four days, leaving Friday free for maintenance and administration.

Mr Holmes has said Unison would consider balloting members for industrial action in January if it could not reach an agreement with council officials.

Mr Parker’s memo confirms the council is in discussion with the trade unions on some of their concerns over working conditions and the bin rounds.

It also reveals that agency staff have been employed to make up the numbers.

He adds: “The service to our residents is our highest priority.

“Therefore we have employed a number of agency drivers and loaders to provide a short term buffer as we move through the investigation process and into the Christmas period.”