Orange County Teamsters resolve strike at Republic, while San Diego Teamsters begin strike

More than 450 sanitation workers who are members of Teamsters Local 396 and employed by Phoenix-based Republic Services’ waste hauling sites in Anaheim and Huntington Beach, California, ratified new collective bargaining agreements after striking for seven days to protest what they say are Republic’s violations of federal labor laws that protect workers’ rights.

According to a news release from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the two contracts will cover workers through 2025 and include wage increases among other improvements.

“I want to applaud these determined workers for standing strong the past week,” says Ron Herrera, secretary-treasurer of Local 396. “These two contracts were made all the stronger because workers decided to take their future into their own hands.”

During that strike, five striking members of Local 396 extended the picket line by traveling to Republic’s hauling yard in New Orleans and putting up a picket there. Other striking workers extended the picket line to Republic’s recycling facility in Anaheim. However, Teamsters say Republic workers at both locations—members of Teamsters Local 270 and 952, respectively—refused to cross Local 396’s picket line.

While that agreement has been resolved, more than 250 workers who are members of Local 542 at Republic Services in San Diego have gone on strike to demand the company negotiate a fair contact.

Teamsters reports that the strike in San Diego is one of several other contracts that it is currently negotiating in the U.S.

According to Teamsters, its members who work for Republic Services are in negotiations for new contracts with the company in eight locations—San Diego; San Francisco; Stockton, California; San Jose, California; Richmond, California; Seattle; Pittsburgh; and New Orleans. Members of Teamsters Local 270 in New Orleans recently had been on strike for three days in November to protest what they claim are Republic’s violations of federal labor laws.

“It took a seven-day strike with two extensions to get the company to promise to stop breaking the law and bargain fair contracts in Orange County,” says Chuck Stiles, director of the Teamsters Solid Waste & Recycling Division. “If Republic keeps violating the law and abusing its workers, I expect we’ll see more labor actions in other locations, as we saw this morning in San Diego.”

Recycling Today reached out to Republic Services for comments on the strikes. The company says it "is pleased that we were able to reach agreements for new contracts with the union that represents our Orange County employees." 

The company continues, "We take pride in providing all of our employees a total rewards package that includes competitive wages and comprehensive benefits. We have resumed service in our Orange County communities, and we are grateful to our municipal partners for their patience during this work stoppage. Unfortunately, the same union has orchestrated a work stoppage today at some San Diego County Republic sites, and trash and recycling service is temporarily delayed in some areas. This work stoppage is occurring as the company and the union have been negotiating a renewal of the contract covering our union-represented employees in San Diego County. Republic respects the rights of our employees to engage in the collective bargaining process, and we continue to negotiate in good faith to achieve fair and competitive labor contracts."