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Municipal Strike Grounds Services as Headliners Boycott Philadelphia’s July Fourth Event

Stalled wage talks with AFSCME DC 33 have left trash piling up, prompting two star performers to honor picket lines.

A man tosses trash at a garbage collection site, Thursday, July 3, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
A woman drops off trash at a garbage collection site, Thursday, July 3, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
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Overview

  • The four-day strike by over 9,000 city workers has halted sanitation, emergency dispatch and other essential services across Philadelphia.
  • Court orders forcing some medical examiner and water department staff back to work have only partially reduced service backlogs.
  • LL Cool J and Jazmine Sullivan withdrew from the Wawa Welcome America Festival in solidarity with strikers, refusing to cross picket lines.
  • The city’s proposal of about 3% annual raises over three years was rejected by the union as insufficient to meet living wage demands.
  • Negotiators for Mayor Cherelle Parker and AFSCME District Council 33 remain deadlocked as residents await resumed talks and restored public services.