The Republic Services media team said that the company and Teamsters Local 25 met with a federal mediator on July 2.
The Republic’s media team said, “The Teamsters did not match our willingness to achieve a new contract.”
The company said that it presented terms that addressed the union’s stated interests and could have resolved the contract dispute.
“The Teamsters rejected them without providing a counter. Republic Services believes the union is putting its own self-interest ahead of its union members and the communities they serve,” the company said.
Republic Services said it offers its employees “competitive wages, industry-leading benefit plans, and a generous holiday and paid time off program.”
The company said that it “continues to strongly condemn the reckless behavior of the Teamsters, who, for the second consecutive day, harassed drivers out servicing customers, putting both employees and the public at risk.”
The company stated that the Teamsters have engaged in criminal behavior, including slashing tires on occupied vehicles, harassing drivers out servicing customers, threatening employees, and sabotaging trucks.
“At Republic Services, safety is non-negotiable,” said Market Vice President Kurt Lavery. “Teamsters’ actions are putting our drivers at risk as we serve customers. We are committed to good-faith negotiations, and we will not tolerate actions that endanger our employees or our communities.”
Despite this, Republic Services said it has implemented contingency plans to minimize service disruptions, including deploying employees from other areas, prioritizing routes, and optimizing routing efficiencies.
“We remain committed to reaching a fair agreement that benefits our employees and our customers,” Lavery added. “We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience the Teamsters are causing.”
The Teamsters also released a statement regarding the July 2 negotiations.
They said that the “overwhelming” vote to strike was caused by Republic‘s “refusal to agree to pay the same wages and benefits that have been negotiated by Local 25 at Capitol Waste and Star Waste Systems, the trash behemoth’s major competitors in Eastern Massachusetts.”
“This strike is all about fairness, equity, and maintaining the area standards established by Local 25,” said Thomas G. Mari, President of Local 25. “I have never seen a group of workers who are so united and committed to making certain they are able to enjoy the same pay and benefits as people who are doing the exact same job at another employer.”
The statement from the Teamsters read, “Republic has never indicated in any negotiating sessions that it cannot afford to pay the wages and health insurance provided by its competitors. In fact, Republic Services — the second-largest sanitation company in North America — enjoyed total revenue of $16 billion in 2024, a nearly six percent increase over the year prior. The firm also returned $1.18 billion to shareholders and close to $13 million to its CEO.”
The statemen continued, “Republic acknowledges its wage schedule is several dollars below its competitors, as well as the fact that its health insurance plan is not as comprehensive as the Teamsters Plan enjoyed by Local 25 members at other sanitation employers throughout the region. Yet the company still refuses to agree to provide the same wages or health care.”
Mari said, “The strike will take as long as necessary to make certain that Republic Teamsters get what they’ve rightfully earned. We’re not looking for Republic to pay more than others. We just want them to meet the standards we’ve already established in Greater Boston.”
He added that “Republic has to realize that our members are fully committed to this effort. This strike will end when Republic comes to its senses and agrees to bring pay and benefits up to the industry standard. We know they can afford it.”
Teamsters Local 25 represents more than 13,000 members and their families in greater Boston and southern New England.
This leaves many in the affected communities wondering when of if their garbage will be disposed of.
In Lynnfield, assistant town administrator, Bob Curtin released an updated curbside collection schedule.
It will operate as follows, on Friday, crews will be collecting Wednesday trash only.
On Saturday, crews will be completing Wednesday trash & recycling only as well as completing Thursday trash and will begin working on Thursday recycling.
On Monday, crews will be collecting Friday trash and recycling and completing Thursday recycling.
Curtin said “We ask residents to put your items curbside prior to 7:00 a.m. on the morning of your scheduled collection above and leave them out. Routes may be completed differently, and by different workers, but we are committed to collecting per the schedule above. Please put all trash in containers with secure lids.”
He said that next weeks’ crews will work to collect trash only, with a one day delay starting Tuesday. Monday routes will be collected on Tuesday, Tuesday on Wednesday, etc.
Residents will be allowed to bring residential trash, comingled recycling and the regular yard waste and cardboard items collected with a sticker or license at the DPW Facility on 55R Summer Street.
Temporary Drop Off Services will operate as followed, Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Monday through Friday next week from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Saturday, 7/12/25 from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
In Marblehead, according to a press release issued by the board of health, Republic Services crews will collect the Tuesday route on Wednesday, the Wednesday route on Thursday, the Thursday route on Friday, and the Friday route on Saturday. Their crews will be working on July 4th.
The statement read, “We apologize for the inconvenience and difficulties this situation is causing. We appreciate your support and patience during this challenging time.”
In Peabody, Mayor Ted Bettencourt said that trash and recycling pickup in the city will operate on a one-day delayed schedule for the rest of this week. He said that for residents whose regular pickup day is Wednesday, your pickup day this week will be Thursday, and so on throughout the rest of the week through Saturday, including pickup on Friday, July 4th, a holiday.
Bettencourt added that there will be no white goods pickup this week, and white goods will not be accepted at the Department of Public Services facility until further notice.
In Swampscott, the town has announced that Republic Services will resume trash and recycling pick-ups on July 7 after the previous announcement on Wednesday of the company going on strike.
“We have been notified by our trash contractor, Republic, that trash and recycling will not be collected this week. Republic has assured us that they will resume full operations on Monday and will collect two weeks’ worth of trash & recycling. Please do your best to keep your trash in covered containers. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding,” the town wrote in an online statement.
The strike has affected communities across the North Shore, such as Swampscott, Marblehead, Lynnfield, and Peabody.
It was initiated after the workers’ contracts with Republic Services expired due to stalled negotiations between Republic and Teamsters Local 25, the union stated.
Interim Town Administrator and Director of the Department of Public Works, Gino Cresta, expressed his views on the matter.
“It’s going to be a challenge for residents to keep their trash in place for another week, but what we’re hoping for (is) that they’ll be here Monday to pick up everybody’s trash, regardless of how much is out there,” Cresta said. “They’re not going to pick up bulk items, like metals … but if there’s a little bit of extra trash, residents aren’t going to have to worry about it.”
