Trash collection delays seen across Bay Area as workers continue strike

Residents across the Bay Area are noticing their waste bins have not been picked up. Many communities are seeing delays in waste pickups due to a strike by workers at a major waste services company.

Workers at some Republic Services facilities in the Bay Area are refusing to cross a picket line in solidarity with workers striking for better pay, benefits, and labor protections.

Workers with the union Teamsters Local 439 launched their strike Tuesday at the Forward Landfill in Manteca and said the stoppage could disrupt collections for “tens of thousands” of Stockton-area residents, the union said in a statement.

Local 439 Principal Officer Sal Lomeli explained that the workers at the Republic Services-owned landfill in Manteca have been negotiating for better pay and benefits. According to Lomeli, some of those workers work in hazardous conditions and are making an average of $25 to $28 an hour. Lomeli said that Republic Services has been “negotiating in bad faith,” and hasn’t been offering wage increases that account for the cost of living.

As a result, union employees are expanding their strike, and now Bay Area Republic Services employees are striking in solidarity.

Republic Services said it anticipates “temporary service delays” for some recycling and waste collection customers in the following areas:

• Stockton
• San Jose
• Solano County
• Fairfield
• Suisun
• San Pablo
• Richmond
• Hercules
• Pinole
• Rodeo
• Crockett
• El Sobrante
• Piedmont
• East Richmond Heights
• Bay View
• Montalvan
• Tara Hills
• North Richmond
• Rollingwood
• Union City
• Newark
• Freemont
• Half Moon Bay
• Daly City
• Colma

“We are making adjustments to our operations to continue providing service during this situation,” Republic Services said in a statement.

The company also said that services are still being provided to essential businesses like hospitals, nursing homes, and apartment complexes.

On Wednesday, residents in Pinole, Hercules, and El Sobrante told NBC Bay Area their trash had not been picked up as usual this week. Some Contra Costa County residents said they were notified that their trash wasn’t picked up due to weather. Republic Services explained that the message “incorrectly cited weather” and that the company followed up with customers with a text message explaining that the delay was due to “union work stoppage.”

The strike comes days after Republic Services workers in Boston, near Chicago, and near Atlanta went on strike. A spokesperson for Local 25, which represents Republic Services employees in the Northeast, explained that the Northern California strikes by Republic Services employees are technically separate, though all part of the same broader goal of getting better wages for employees.

Republic Services said it anticipates service delays for some customers in the Bay Area. The company noted that the Manteca landfill is one of only four locations in North America where the union has called a work stoppage.

“We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience this situation may cause,” the company said in a statement.

Republic Services said, “We remain ready to reach fair agreements in each of these locations that benefit our employees and our customers.”

For some in West Contra Costa County, Supervisor John Gioia said garbage collection wouldn’t be happening on schedule.

“We are advised that this is due to drivers not crossing a picket line which was set up to support workers who are on strike at a Republic-owned Landfill near Stockton,” Gioia wrote Tuesday morning on social media. On Wednesday, Gioa posted to social media again, saying that the strike was continuing to impact trash service.

“We have been told that pick-up services will hopefully be resumed this Thursday which means your garbage pick up will be delayed by a couple of days and should be picked up on Thursday, Friday or Saturday,” Gioia wrote.

The stoppage does not impact trash collection in El Cerrito or Kensington, Gioia said.

Disruptions in Union City, Newark, and Fremont to garbage, recycling, and compost collection also happened, the cities said in separate statements.

Half Moon Bay residents were also experiencing delays, the city said in a statement.

A pre-recorded message at its Republic Services’ Richmond facility Tuesday morning said delays were due to “unforeseen labor circumstances.”