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Nationwide Teamsters Strike Enters Third Week as Garbage Piles Up

Local officials weigh rate relief, emergency declarations.

Non union garbage truck drivers collected some trash, Saturday, in Chula Vista, July 12, 2025.
Legoland announced it will launch a new space-themed land early next year that will include an “immersive, groundbreaking indoor roller coaster
Unemptied trash bins line the street on Brookside Drive in Richmond during a Republic Services workers solidarity strike on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. Workers for Republic Services, the garbage collection agency that collects household waste weekly in dozens of Bay Area cities, are now on their second week of a solidarity strike with their national Teamsters union.
Mike Hughes, a business agent for Teamsters Local 315, left, disperses benefits checks to union members outside the Golden Bear Transfer Station in Richmond, Calif., on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. 

Overview

  • The strike began July 1 with 450 Boston workers and has since spread to involve more than 2,000 Teamsters nationwide.
  • Trash accumulation has prompted Bay Area cities to open transfer stations and set up temporary drop-off sites to manage overflowing bins.
  • Republic Services has resumed limited residential pickups in parts of Contra Costa County, though recycling and green waste collection remain suspended.
  • Federal mediators are scheduled to reconvene talks this week after two weeks of stalled contract negotiations.
  • State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg has urged a fair resolution, and San Mateo County leaders are exploring rate credits for customers who missed service.