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The union that represents more than 9,000 city workers said in a post on X that it is resuming contract talks with Philadelphia officials as its strike continued for a fifth day.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees District Council 33, which represents sanitation workers, city mechanics, 911 dispatchers and school crossing guards, announced the strike after talks stalled between both parties late Monday night.
With household trash collection paused, bags of waste have piled up on the sidewalks and at designated city collection sites.
Wages are the sticking point in the negotiations, DC33 leader Greg Boulware said earlier this week.
“We got people that work and repair the water mains and can’t afford their water bill,” he said. “We got people that repair the runways at the airport and can’t afford a plane ticket. I don’t want to be rich. We just want a comfort inside the city that we serve daily.”
The average DC33 member makes $46,000 a year. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, that figure falls $2,000 below the city’s “living wage” per the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Living Wage Calculator.