Garbage trucks were seen in the neighborhood early this morning, but Waste Management workers went on strike mid-morning, according to The Seattle Times.
Union garbage haulers went out on strike at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, culminating a three-week standoff with their employer, Waste Management, which provides collection services to about 1 million customers in King and Snohomish Counties.
Members of Teamsters Local 174 were told to return their trucks to their bases and set up picket lines outside Waste Management facilities, said spokesman Michael Gonzales.
“We’re telling our members to turn their trucks back,” Gonzales said.
Gonzales said the company has violated federal labor law, including bargaining in bad faith, coercing employees, threatening to retaliate against workers and unilaterally changing working conditions. The Teamsters have been working without a contract since April 1.
Read the full Times story here.
Waste Management’s contract covers the northwest and south sections of Seattle.
Seattle Public Utilities just issued this press release:
Those customers whose collections are missed today are asked to put all of their garbage and yard waste out next week on their regular collection day.
The City’s recycling services are covered by a different contract, and should not be affected by the strike. All customers are asked to keep their recycling out.
Approximately 18,000 residential customers could be affected by the strike action today in the following approximate areas:
- N. 105th St to N. 85th St, W. of SR-99
Delridge Way SW to Beacon Ave. S, from S. Royal Brougham to SW Roxbury St.
View a detailed map of the affected area.
17 responses so far ↓
1 Mike Perry // Apr 21, 2010 at 12:37 pm
The union may come regret this strike. The times are changing. Aggressive ecycling, handled by a different company, has radically reduced the amount of raw garbage most households generate. Where I live, the ratio must be close to ten-to-one. We could easily stuff a month’s worth of garbage in a large garbage bag and make a single, two-mile trip to dump it off. And that would probably be much cheaper than paying for pickup.
Also, this strike won’t be like NYC was on one of my visits there. We won’t be seeing large mounds of torn plastic bags lying on our sidewalks breeding flies and odors. One helpful neighbor with a pickup could easily transport all the garbage a block of houses generates in a week.
2 Whopper // Apr 21, 2010 at 12:59 pm
Fire ‘em and hire some of those hard working latinos that hang out at Home Depot on Aurora for half the price.
3 rachel // Apr 21, 2010 at 1:56 pm
My vote is for the working man. I love my haulers! Good luck, guys.
4 Tiktok // Apr 21, 2010 at 2:53 pm
I thought I read that the recycling guys were honoring the strike, so neither garbage nor recycling will be picked up.
5 davey // Apr 21, 2010 at 3:28 pm
We live on NW 80th and our garbage hasn’t been picked up as of yet. I wonder if the affected area is actually larger than what is listed in this article?
6 Brian // Apr 21, 2010 at 3:50 pm
@davey
Look at the pdf map linked above, noting the area for Wednesday. Basically, if yours hasn’t been picked up yet, it won’t happen today.
7 Whopper // Apr 21, 2010 at 4:23 pm
“My vote is for the working man.”
If they were working men, your garbage would be picked up.
8 Eric // Apr 21, 2010 at 5:43 pm
Here’s all I know about the situation:
Rfor my business garbage collection just went up about 25%.
Waste Management gets a monopoly in my neighborhood, so I can’t just call some other collector to get my garbage.
Everybody throws around the $100k figure for the employee’s compensation, but this includes wages taxes, benefits, etc. Not really way out of line for someone doing difficult, dangerous work involving operating heavy machinery.
A lot of folks say that the union is overplaying its hand in the current economy, and they may have a point. Another way of looking at it, however, is that a very profitable company is using the current economy to further squeeze its employees and locking in lower wages & benefits now before the economy booms again.
9 trashed // Apr 21, 2010 at 9:01 pm
This strike is avoidable, and seems an awful lot like what I remember from my history lessons. American culture has a fundamental reflex against carpet bagger robber barons moving into towns and short-changing the labor force.
If you’re angry too, call Duane Woods (WM West Division VP) at (480) 419-6140. If you don’t get him, leave him a message telling him how we don’t want him lowering our local standard of living.
10 Whopper // Apr 22, 2010 at 7:02 am
Short changing? These guys make 70K a year PLUS health, pension. Total package: $100K/year. For picking up garbage and driving a truck.
The only people being ‘short changed’ are home owners paying the taxes.
I say hire the Mexicans at Home Depot to do the work.
11 Jon // Apr 22, 2010 at 12:10 pm
Just hire some scabs. I’ll be a WM scab for $69k/yr with benefits. Imagine the savings! As a bonus, you won’t have your trash sitting around!
12 Mrs Murphey // Apr 22, 2010 at 1:27 pm
Is there a problem with people earning a decent wage and benefits? Try raising a family in Seattle on less.
Are bankers the only ones allowed to be compensated for their labors?
Why would you want to be hired as a scab? Are you that hard up for a job?
13 Fnarf // Apr 22, 2010 at 3:50 pm
@12, most Seattle families live on less. I know we do.
14 Whopper // Apr 22, 2010 at 5:16 pm
You earn your worth. Garbage collecting is low skill, low education work. Ergo: low pay. Not $100k a year. Just because we’re tax payers, why should we get scr*wed?
Hire some mexicans from Home Depot.
15 iheartgreenwood // Apr 22, 2010 at 7:43 pm
Hey, garbage men on strike, you know what? You’re lucky to have a job in this economy, and you already make more money than anyone in my family and most people that I know.
16 Mrs. Murphey // Apr 23, 2010 at 10:48 am
It is a dangerous job, apparently thankless, and tough on the body.
Would you feel better if we called them all hygene engineers and required graduate level course work? Is that how you measure worth?
Who is screwing the tax payers?
And #13, yes, I know many families live on less. You and I both know what sort of frugality that takes – good for you!
17 April // Apr 23, 2010 at 7:34 pm
Garbage collection is one of the top ten most dangerous jobs in the nation. A garbage man is far more likely to die on the job than a police officer. Not only is it dangerous, it is also pretty thankless.
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