Illinois Teamsters picketing outside of Republic Services say to expect delays in trash pickup
ERIE, Mich. (WTVG) — Teamsters from local 179 representing Republic Services drivers in Ottawa, Illinois, said there may be delays down the line for trash pickup in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan.
Local 179 is picketing outside of the Republic Services in Erie, Michigan, to put pressure on the company as part of an ongoing strike over contract negotiations.
“We’ll be here until Republic comes to the table and gives our members what they’re asking for,” Bob Joly, the recording secretary with Teamsters Local 179 in Illinois, said. “We’re Teamsters, we’re here to fight, we’re here to win.”
The union that represents drivers in the Toledo area, Teamsters Local 20, is not crossing the picket line. Republic Services halted operations, Tuesday, causing delays. The company called in replacement drivers to resume trash pickup on a one-day delay.
Joly told 13 Action News there are roughly 35 replacement drivers. He said that typically, the Erie, Michigan, location has over 100 drivers on the roads.
He said that with lower staffing, there could be delays in the future.
But, a spokesperson with the city of Toledo issued the following statement to 13 Action News, explaining the trash pickup status:
“Trash and recycling are continuing on a 1-day delay. A couple of yesterday’s routes were finished up this morning, but otherwise everything is running as expected. Bulk collection did resume, but is running a little bit slower. We are hoping to be caught up with everything by the end of the day Saturday to resume a normal schedule next Monday.”
The city of Sylvania took to social media to alert residents that if their cans haven’t been picked up, they should take them out to the curb for pickup on Friday or Saturday.
Drivers with Teamsters Local 20 haven’t been to work since Monday.
“But they are eligible for the strike and defense fund and all that through the international union, so they’re being taken care of there,” said Joly.
13 Action News reached out to Teamsters Local 20 for comment, and they declined.
As for the Teamsters from Illinois, they said they’ve been without a contract since July 1 and are now showing up in different cities to put pressure on Republic Services.
“The issues for us in Ottawa is the fact that Republic has three facilities in the area, the other two are almost a $9 an hour wage difference,” Joly said.
Joly said his union members want better pay, but they’re willing to take health and welfare or pension, which they say many other Republic facilities offer.
“We’re not going to back down from this,” Joly said. “Republic wanted a war and they got it.”
13 Action News reached out to Republic Services, asking to confirm how many replacement drivers are working out of Erie, and how that might impact collections in the coming days. Republic Services did not answer these specific questions but issued this statement:
“Republic Services is in contract negotiations with the union representing a small number of our employees in Illinois. A few of those employees are picketing outside our Toledo hauling location, and our local union employees are choosing not to cross this picket line, which is disrupting service. Our landfill is not impacted at this time. We have brought in additional Republic Services employees to assist with collections, and most customers are experiencing a one-day delay. We are asking customers to leave their containers out until they are serviced. We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience and are working hard to resume normal operations as quickly as we can.”
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