Trash Piles Up As Workers Strike On South Shore
PLYMOUTH (CBS) - A stinky situation is percolating on the South Shore, where trash collectors have been on the picket line for more than a week.
"They say it's going to be collected, and then it's not collected," said Craig Murray, who drove to the Marshfield transfer station to throw away his trash and some of his neighbors' garbage. Republic Services normally does residential pick-up in Marshfield, Rockland and Abington, but 24 trash collectors have been on strike since last Thursday.
"It stinks, number one. It smells horribly," said Elizabeth Lewis, who lives in a Plymouth condominium complex that has a commercial contract with Republic.
Thursday, a replacement worker from one of Republic's non-union areas showed up to clean piles of trash heaped in and around the dumpsters. "It's been pretty rough. You don't know what was living in there," said Bill Richard, who said he'd been storing bags of garbage in his house.
On the picket line, 24 striking workers were joined by dozens of supporters. "These people that got their trash piled up, we apologize. This is not our intention. We're only out here fighting trying to get what's right for us to secure our future," said trash collector Vanel Michel.
Representatives of Teamsters Local 25 said both sides met Thursday morning, but walked away from negotiations after about two hours without any progress. The workers are asking for higher wages and healthcare benefits.
The Arizona-based company sent a statement saying, "Republic Services resumed residential and business collections this week…Republic Services respects our employees' right to collective bargaining and will continue to work toward a fair contract."
