NYC Mayor's curbside trash push peeves powerful union

A proposal limiting how long trash can sit on city sidewalks faces opposition from 32BJ SEIU, the property service workers’ union.

Uncollected garbage overflow onto a sidewalk on 53rd Street in mid-Manhattan area of New York. | Bebeto Matthews/AP Photo

By DANIELLE MUOIO DUNN
08/26/2022 

NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams has rankled senior officials with 32BJ SEIU, the nation’s largest property service workers’ union and an influential supporter of his campaign, with a proposal to limit the hours buildings can put trash out for pickup.

In recent weeks, Adams has focused much of his agenda on addressing quality-of-life nuisances, using a sledgehammer to tear down abandoned dining sheds in Manhattan and demonstrating composting at a press conference in Queens. But the most recent impasse with the building workers union highlights how Adams has struggled at times to build the kind of coalition he needs to execute major policy initiatives.

Earlier this year, Adams failed to convince Albany lawmakers to pass many of his top legislative priorities, from a four-year extension of mayoral control over city schools to the renewal of a tax incentive program that subsidized affordable housing construction. Now, his idea for cleaning up city streets amid a spike in complaints from residents is facing resistance much closer to home.

Sanitation officials first revealed in late July that they intend to propose rules that limit how long smelly trash bags can sit on curbs waiting for pickup. Residences and businesses would have to wait until 8 p.m. to set out their trash or risk being fined $50 for a first offense. Those who want to do the dirty deed earlier could also opt to put their trash out at 6 p.m. — as long as it’s in a secured container.

But opposition has been brewing amid leadership at 32BJ SEIU, which represents the workers who are tasked with handling trash in New York’s high-rise buildings. The policy change would have a significant impact on thousands of workers who would have to take on later shifts.

“The thing that concerns me, if I’m being super honest, is their plan is fully baked and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of room for them to hear our concerns,” said a senior official from 32BJ, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the conversations. “They’re basically saying, ‘this is what we want to do, how do we get your support for this.’”

Union officials are still fleshing out their counterproposal, but they want the city to first consider a pilot program, the person said. They pointed to one bill in the Council that would alter when trash can be put out in designated areas with a high number of rats.

Amid mounting backlash, the city hasn’t moved forward on the policy change — which would require a public comment period before taking effect. In a statement to POLITICO, Sanitation Commissioner Jessica Tisch voiced a commitment to the initiative, arguing that the status quo serves as an “all you can eat buffet for rats.”

“We’re working collaboratively with interested stakeholders on this, including our partners in labor and property owners large and small, but New Yorkers are fed up with the status quo, and making small tweaks around the edges just isn’t going to cut it anymore,” Tisch said. “We have been charged with making a meaningful change to the conditions on the streets, and we’re going to do what it takes — what New Yorkers want, expect, and deserve.”

The proposed shift in trash collection builds on other recent efforts from city officials to make streets more attractive.

Complaints of litter-strewn streets, foul odors and rats increased during the pandemic, coinciding with the de Blasio administration’s decision to cut funding for many sanitation programs. Adams has since rolled out new initiatives to combat the sense of disorder, stating that cleaning up city streets is an essential component of the overall recovery from the covid public health crisis.

The administration recently launched a new Clean Curbs pilot program to put more bags in designated waste containers, emulating practices in other big cities to create more livable sidewalks and try to deter rats. The city also reinstated twice-a-week street sweeping and is increasing surveillance of illegal dumping. In October, the Sanitation Department will launch a new weekly collection program for food and yard waste in Queens.

But the proposal at issue with 32BJ could be one of the most consequential sanitation policy initiatives Adams has pursued. It would reconfigure how the city manages the roughly 14 million tons of residential trash produced every year, changing its physical presence on city streets and altering how scores of workers handle the heaps of black bags.

Sanitation officials have said the adjustment is long overdue — New York is an outlier among major cities in allowing residential trash to be set out as early as 4 p.m. Adjusting the hours trash can sit on curbs limits how long they can attract rats and improves street cleanliness for much of the day.

The city has already prepared for the move by asking more of its workers to burn the midnight oil.

Sanitation trucks have historically started roaming the city at 6 a.m., allowing waste to sit on curbs for up to 14 hours. Since the spring, the city has moved roughly 25 percent of its trash collection service to the midnight shift, according to the Sanitation Department. That more closely aligns with the private waste industry, which usually sends trucks out at night to service businesses and restaurants.

Harry Nespoli, head of the sanitation workers union, said in an interview that Tisch has been working closely with him on the initiative and that he thinks it could improve street cleanliness. The city’s contract with the union expires in December, and Nespoli said he expects the desire for more night shifts to be a topic of conversation.

There is a financial incentive for the midnight shift, and many are already accustomed to taking it during winter months because the department handles snow removal. Workers also started taking more night shifts during Covid-19 to reduce crowding in sanitation garages.

“Her [Tisch’s] idea is not a bad idea — I’m serious, just to get that eyesore out of New York,” Nespoli said in a late July interview, when details of the initiative were first reported by the New York Post.