Philly trash strike ends with no major wins for municipal union
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Trash bags line Germantown Avenue in Germantown on July 4. Photo: Mike D'Onofrio/Axios
Philadelphia's largest and lowest-paid municipal union is back on the job after an eight-day strike, but they have little to show for it.
Why it matters: District Council 33's tentative deal with Mayor Cherelle Parker still faces a major test when it goes before the full union for rejection or ratification.
State of play: DC33's more than 9,000 members began returning to their shifts Wednesday, but not all city services will resume immediately.
- Regular trash collection will restart Monday. Residents can use Philly's six sanitation centers until then.
- The Free Library is back to regular hours, but Parker says pools and recreation centers could take a bit longer to catch up.
What they're saying: "The strike is over, and nobody's happy," DC33's president Greg Boulware told the Inquirer. "We felt our clock was running out."
- Parker's ongoing court victories forcing certain striking union members back to the job over safety issues continued to chip away at the effectiveness of the strike.
- A union spokesperson declined to comment to Axios.
The other side: Parker took a victory lap during a Wednesday news conference, championing the deal and praising her team, who went to "war with the status quo."
- "We balanced valuing the men and women of District Council 33 … with protecting the fiscal responsibility of this city and its stability," she said.
The intrigue: Missing from the event was DC33 leadership.
The deal: Parker and DC33 reached a tentative agreement around 4am Wednesday, which states:
- Workers get 3% raises each year over the next three years — well below the 8% the union originally pushed for.
- They also gain a fifth pay scale step with a 2% pay bump, which half the members can cash in immediately.
- Plus: A $1,500 bonus in the first year, retroactive to July 1.
Between the lines: The tentative agreement is close to Parker's original offer before Boulware called the strike, Chief Deputy Mayor Sinceré Harris said at the news conference.
The big picture: The agreement is a mixed bag for Parker.
- She was able to get DC33 to agree to most of her raise terms — the biggest stumbling block in negotiations. But her popularity may have taken a hit in the process.
Zoom in: Many residents and business owners were at their wits' end with the trash strike and believe it should've been averted, Jabari Jones, president of the West Philadelphia Corridor Collaborative, tells Axios.
- Some of the city's trash drop-off sites turned busy business corridors into eyesores, attracting rodents and insects, Jones says.
- Several "random dumping sites" popped up across Philly, including one near Fairmount Park.
- "It was a nightmare," Jones says.
Meanwhile, the union vote could become a litmus test for members' loyalty to Boulware and potentially force negotiators back to the bargaining table if the deal is rejected.
- It's unclear whether a vote has been scheduled.
What we're watching: How quickly the city cleans up the mess.
- "That's going to be [Parker's] biggest challenge in terms of turning this around," Jones says. "People already don't have much patience."