The leader of Pembrokeshire County Council, Clr. John Davies, has warned there will be some disruption to the authority's services on Wednesday and Thursday of next week (July 16 and 17) due to the planned national two-day strike by local government workers. The dispute over pay involves the unions Unison and Unite. Said Clr. Davies "We intend to keep the disruption of services to a minimum wherever possible, but it is inevitable there will be some inconvenience and we are asking people to be patient. "This is a national dispute which is beyond the control of Pembrokeshire County Council." The main casualty of the strike will be refuse collections which are likely to be cancelled both days. Refuse not collected on Wednesday and Thursday will be collected as normal the following week. Schools in the county, however, will remain open, with the exception of Portfield Special School in Haverfordwest, which caters for children and young people with severe, profound and complex learning difficulties. There may be restrictions on the services offered in some primary schools. Individual schools will advise parents beforehand of any such restrictions. The council's customer service centres in Haverfordwest (located in the north wing of County Hall), Fishguard, Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock are also likely to be closed, although the telephone contact centre will be operating albeit on a reduced level. "We are asking people to phone the council only in emergency situations and that they should delay routine calls until after the strike is over," said Clr. Davies. Haverfordwest Airport will also be closed on both days of the strike, while libraries - other than those in Pembroke Dock and Neyland - are likely to remain open. The unions have exempted a limited number of workers in the social care sector from industrial action. These include those working in residential homes for the elderly, all critical home care services and emergency duty social workers.
