Sanitation workers strike, pausing trash pickup around Greater Boston

Hundreds of union sanitation workers went on strike Tuesday as contract negotiations with their company stalled, halting trash pickup in towns and cities across Greater Boston.

The workers are employed by Republic Services, a private garbage and recycling company that operates nationwide. The company is contracted by over a dozen communities around Boston and the North Shore.

The Teamsters Local 25, the union representing the workers, said in a statement that the company's agreement with employees lapsed on Monday. The union said and that they have made "several attempts" to negotiate with Republic. They are asking for better wages, benefits and labor protections.

"The multibillion-dollar waste giant has refused to give workers a fair deal, pushing them to the picket line," the union said in a statement.

Republic called the strike a "disappointment" in a statement, saying that the move "does not benefit our employees or the communities we serve." The company said that they offer "competitive wages" and intended to raise compensation during negotiations.

In the meantime, Republic said they aim to continue trash pickup.

"We planned for the possibility of a work stoppage and have taken several steps to continue providing service, including securing Republic Services employees from other areas, prioritizing routes and optimizing routing efficiency," the company said in a statement.

But trash day was put on hold in cities and towns in Greater Boston. Municipal officials in Watertown, North Reading and Marblehead posted notices that trash would not be collected Tuesday and asked residents to remove their garbage and recycling from the curb.

In Malden, officials posted a notice saying that trash pickup would not take place Tuesday and they expected service to resume on Wednesday. Officials called it a "day-to-day situation" and said they would keep residents updated on service changes.

All told, 450 workers serving Peabody, Manchester-by-the-Sea, Gloucester, Wakefield, Marblehead, Malden, Topsfield, Saugus, Beverly, Danvers, North Reading, Lynnfield, Reading, Swampscott, Arlington, Watertown, and Canton are on strike, according to the union. The striking employees planned to rally in Peabody on Tuesday.

The Teamsters said represented workers across the country are also negotiating with Republic, and employees in other states could strike as well.