Republic Services sued for charging customers during labor strike

A proposed class-action lawsuit has been filed against Phoenix-based Republic Services on behalf of a Carmel Valley, California, resident who alleges the company continued to bill customers during the month-long strike in various parts of San Diego County.

The 14-page complaint was filed Jan. 25 by attorneys Ramin Hariri and Daryoosh Khashayar, who have separate law firms in the Carmel Valley neighborhood of San Diego. The plaintiff is Qihai Chen, who lives in nearby Carmel Mountain Ranch.

“Defendants intentionally charged plaintiff’s and other class members debit and credit cards in the full amount of recurring fees despite the interruption of services that occurred between December 2021 and January 2022,” states the complaint. “Plaintiff and the class did not consent to defendants charging of their debit and credit cards for services that were not provided.”

As reported by The San Diego Union-Tribune, the legal claim accuses Republic Services and its related company, Allied Waste Systems, of breach of contract for failing to pick up trash as called for under their agreements with the cities of San Diego and Chula Vista.

In addition, the lawsuit accuses the companies of unjust enrichment and violating unfair competition laws.

Republic Services—which settled the strike Jan. 17 after trash piled up at tens of thousands of residences and businesses across San Diego County for nearly five weeks—refused to discuss the allegations in the lawsuit.

Company officials also repeatedly have declined to say whether they would reimburse customers who were not served during the walkout. According to the Union-Tribune, they told other news outlets earlier this month that refunds would be processed on a case-by-case basis.

Approximately 250 employees of Republic Services, members of Teamsters Local No. 542, went on strike just over a week before Christmas in an effort to improve working conditions and increase their pay.

The work stoppage resulted in trash piling up across Chula Vista and parts of San Diego, with homeowners and merchants complaining about heaps of garbage and the rats and other pests attracted to the waste.

Elected officials in San Diego and Chula Vista publicly urged Republic to settle the strike. Sanitation services resumed Jan. 18, one day after unionized employees voted to accept the company’s final offer. The offer included wage increases and some improvements to health insurance.