Mayor: Garbage will be picked up by week’s end

Trash left uncollected in Washington Township due to a strike by garbage collectors should be removed by the end of this week.

By: Lauren Burgoon
   WASHINGTON — Piles of curbside trash left uncollected in the wake of a strike by local garbage collectors should be gone by the end of this week, Mayor Doug Tindall said Tuesday.
   Many homes around town have experienced missed trash pickups recently because Teamsters Local 701 has been on strike since Jan. 9. The union’s members are workers at Waste Management, the largest trash collection company in the country and the one used by several area towns, including Washington. Some residents haven’t had a pickup during the entire time of the strike while others were delayed.
   "Our trash pickups have been affected and we are working with the management at Waste Management to get the trash," Mayor Tindall said. "They have assured us that in the next couple of days everything should be cleaned up."
   Waste Management collects trash from residences, including the developments, and the municipal complex. Two garbage trucks typically handle Washington’s load and collect trash four days a week. The town paid $168,000 for the service in 2004, according to Township Administrator Jack West.
   The missed or delayed garbage collection can be attributed to several factors, the mayor said. Waste Management brought in substitutes after the strike began but the workers are unfamiliar with collection routes.
   "This led to garbage being picked up on one side of the street but not the other in some parts of town," Mayor Tindall said.
   Even as the temporary workers become familiarized with the routes there is a huge backlog of trash that needs to be collected throughout the region. There also is a backup at trash transfer stations in the area because of picketing union members.
   Another issue in Washington is unionized Public Works Department employees who don’t want to cross picket lines of other union workers. This prevents Washington employees from collecting the garbage themselves, as workers have done in Hamilton.
   "We need to be mindful of that because we don’t want them to violate their union policies," Mayor Tindall said.
   Hamilton’s mayor is considering levying fines against Waste Management for missed pickups. Washington officials are also considering fines but Mr. West said nothing is definitive.
   The strike centers on wages and the health benefits package issues, Local 701 President Ernie Soehl said Tuesday. He said other union employees north and south of here are paid higher wages for the same work.
   "They are also trying to change our health plan to give us a much lesser care package," he said of Waste Management.
   Talks between the union and company last week weren’t fruitful and the last talk ended the night of Jan. 13 with no solution. The sides are using a mediator but weren’t back to the table as of Tuesday.
   "The company is aware that we are ready to communicate," Mr. Soehl said. "We’re here seven days a week and willing to talk but they haven’t contacted us."
   Mr. Soehl pledged that his union would remain on strike until an acceptable deal can be worked out.
   Waste Management spokesman George McGrath said that as of Tuesday no further talks were scheduled because the company was waiting to hear from federal and state mediators about the next available date.
   "We look forward to sitting with the union at the bargaining table," he said.
   Mr. McGrath added that in the meantime the substitute employees are covering the full routes. He said that normal collection schedules have already resumed and the company is working with municipalities to take care of any remaining issues.
   The strike is affecting garbage and recycling collection in several towns, including Hamilton, East Windsor, Hopewell and Lawrence, but does not affect recyclable garbage in Washington, which is handled by the Mercer County Improvement Authority. Mayor Tindall said that residents should continue to put out their recycling on time and make sure they recycle as much as possible to cut down on garbage left around homes.
   As for the accumulated regular trash, Mayor Tindall said, "People need to be patient. If their trash isn’t picked up today they should leave it out. It will be picked up by the end of the week."
   Residents who still have uncollected trash after Friday should contact Public Works Supervisor George Field at 259-7082, ext. 133.