Not Dead Yet - Forum

She is 5ft 5in and only seven stone, but Mia Cousins had no problem carrying bags of grass cuttings 50 yards from her garden to the roadside ready for disposal.

The same did not apply, however, to the four burly binmen on the council's 'green' collection run.

The three loaders and a driver left a note on the recycling sacks saying they had not been moved because they were too heavy.The council at Fareham, Hampshire, has defended its binmen claiming they were acting within their rights under Health and Safety Executive rules on ' excessive manual handling risks'.

But Mrs Cousins, a 41-year-old widow and head of retail for the clothing chain Warehouse, said: 'I'm incensed by this. If I can carry the bin bags then so should they.

'Binmen are supposed to be quite strong. They're supposed to pick things up. They wouldn't be able to do their job if they were weedy.'

The note on the sacks complained that they weighed more than 45lb and contained soil including turf  -  a claim she denies.

'Everyone is encouraged to go green and recycle but they put up so many obstacles to stop you,' she added.

'Like most people I pay my council tax for services and I expect the council to keep their part of the bargain.'

Fareham Council spokesman Sue Mills said: 'The crew took the decision that the sacks were too heavy to lift and exercised their discretion.

'On that day the crew, comprising a driver and three loaders, lifted a total of 14.1 tons of garden waste.'

The council this year increased funding to employ extra binmen on its fortnightly garden waste rounds so it could limit the average weight lifted to five tons per person per day.

This followed a health and safety review after dustmen complained about the amount of garden waste bags they had to lift each day.

All other rubbish and recycling is put in wheelie bins which do not have to be lifted.

Last week, the Daily Mail reported how the people of Birks Road, Huddersfield, blockaded a bin lorry until operators agreed to take away rubbish left beside wheelie bins after a refuse strike.

Other victims of bin madness include Gareth Corkhill, from Whitehaven, Cumbria, who was fined and given a criminal record after leaving the lid of his full wheelie bin 4in ajar.

Widow June Kay, 79, was told to push her wheelie bin more than half a mile down a steep hill if she wanted it emptied by Ribble Valley Council in Lancashire.

And Lenny Woodward, 95, a nearblind former Desert Rat, was told that Norwich City Council would not collect his rubbish because he put a ketchup bottle in the wrong bin.

http://tinyurl.com/6o33uk

They should be ashamed of themselves.

Val the worlds gone mad especially UK
someone should stand up for us somene who they will listen to,its the same here they wont take the bin bags now we have to put them out,same with the recyle, thats ok if you can actually do that,these last weeks I havent been able to and some of the people here are too old to do it.Of course they say say you can get it done but you have to fill in forms,these forms are still coming from the council nearly twelve months later ......no sign of them yet !

The World has NOT gone Mad!! --- Only The People!!
Do you really expect the powers to be to stand up for the 'ordinary' People ???    Think Yet Again ??

Everyday I'm seeing news items like this, yesterday it was refusing a parade for war veterans but they allowed one for gay pride, I'm just so amazed by the thoughts of people behind this, doesn't anyone have any standards of right and wrong and decency.In my book defending your country has to come way over any other organisations but not for that particular council. crazy!!!

In the name of 'Common Decency'  everything, but everything is being erroded. Why and by Who ??  Is this a Deliberate Action ?? By our very own people ?? If so, it is tatermount to a civil war. It is beyond the realms of Human Democracy!! There will be more to come ??
Is the country worth Defending, in the face of ever increasing opposition ???????????????

Things like this make me so angry I just wish there was something I could do to bring back common sense and decency to this country. Our so called rights and not my job and 'elf and safety, surely it is our responsibility as a member of the human race to help and support each other regardless of man made rules, what about the rules of basic humanity, they don't exist anymore.

Val, Don't get angry, as I often do!!

Nothing, but Nothing, is as it was!! and It will Not get any better --- In Our Time!!  Keep as happy as You can and have a LAUGH!!  EACH AND EVERY DAY, "IN THE FACE OF EVER INCREASING OPPOSITION" --- At least we sill have our computers?? ----- Tax Free??  LOL!!   LOL!!

No we dont Phoenix you have to have a TV licence for it lol

Don't get me started on the TV license...lol...I wish we could opt out of having the beeb, its only repeats anyway.

Thankfully, we don't have to pay for a TV license. Hurray!!
The crap and repeated repeats, is just too much!!
Shall be getting my Freebie passport this year ??  Don't want to go 'oversea's anymore, but a 'FREEBIE' ?????
Two more years to receive my Extra 25p a week Pension -- Gee!!  I canna wait ????

Phoenix, congratulations!
English senior citizens are really lucky compared to German ones!
Time I move to the UK lol!

Lucky ?? --- No Way!!  The benifits we now receive are what we have worked for ALL our lives -- and they still Deduct each and every April, therebye, reducing our purchasing power and standards of living!!

When do you get free TV licence Phoenix? Is it 70?

Pheoni, youi were a little unkind to Teri,she was comparing uk seniors with german seniore. Teri has a limited use of english than us, so i interpret her meaning as bveing better off.

Phoenix, we, too, have worked for all, but our share for health service is also deducted when we receive our pension, we get no free TV licence or free use of any buses. We have to pay for them till we die. If we have a chance we get a reduction on the entry fee for a museum, but not for all!
So, you see - you are really on the sunny side compared to us. Nevertheless our young generation is of the opinion that we still get too much money when we are retired and there is too few left for them!
Compared to retired people in other European countries Germans are still well off.
Phoenix I don't want to offend you, but sometimes it's good to see further than the end of one's nose!

William,  Quite to the contrary!!  Neither 'unkind nor offencive' -- Purely a 'statement of fact' as we are told by the Press etc; English Senior's Citizens are The lowest paid throught Europe!! That is INCOME!!  Not being aware of any support or help that Europeans receive!!
Considering once again??  Europe is Divided!! No Country, has Equality with any other, is that Not True ???

Teri, The problem IS!! since 1972 Europe was for Equality, where has it Gone ?? I sure do see Much Further Than The End of my Nose!! For Europe to be UNITED??  DON'T YOU BELIEVE THAT ALL PEOPLE SHOULD BE TREATED --- EQUALLY ??? IN ALL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES ????  THE NAME OF THE GAME!!

Phoenix, don't say it too loud - you would be astonished without what you had to do!!!!
I travel a lot through Europe and as far as I can see, the English are still well off compared to other countries. Not that I'm not happy to live in Germany, but many Germans go to Hungary for instance when they are senior citizens, not because of the weather, but because life is there much easier and cheaper than in Germany!

Why does everybody want an easier life ??
 Is this the land of discontent??  Is every country the same ?? Are people not happy anymore??
can't wonder with all the problems there is, and nobody wants to help?????  What a world and how it has changed???

True, it has enormously changed. People have a standard of living they never had before.
Money ruins the personality we say in Germany!
However, somewhere I read that the great discoveries and inventions were only possible because people weren't satisfied with their life and wanted more.