Labor Talks Could Mean Trash Pick-Up Delays In Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Members of a union representing about 10,000 Los Angeles city workers, including hundreds of Los Angeles sanitation workers who did not show up to work Wednesday, are voting on whether to go on strike, officials confirmed Wednesday.
SEIU Local 721 spokeswoman Coral Itzcalli said the union's membership began voting on a potential walkout on Tuesday night.
"Workers are extremely frustrated because of the lack of movement at the bargaining table," she said. "They're hopeful that the mayor and the City Council will find the courage and leadership to take on Wall Street and avert a work stoppage."
Itzcalli would not confirmed whether the union was involved in the job action in which 60 percent of the city's 500 sanitation workers failed to show up for work Wednesday, leaving a diminished crew to pick up trash.
She said the union "is not condoning what actions workers may be taking."
Mayor Eric Garcetti criticized the sanitation workers' actions, saying that "the (negotiating) table is the best place to resolve any grievances you have."
Sanitation Bureau Director Enrique Zaldivar asked residents to leave out their trash bins until the end of the day because the remaining drivers may need until about 7 p.m. to complete trash pick-up.
Zaldivar said it was unclear how long the union action would last.
Scott Mann, a spokesman for the Coalition of L.a. City Unions, which bargains on behalf of the union, said he is "not aware of any action" and if there was, "it's not Coalition related."
The bureau will collect black solid waste bins Wednesday as scheduled and other bins – those that take recyclables and green waste – on Saturday.
The bureau's contingency plans have been worked out to enable the bureau "to continue our operations with minimal inconvenience," according to a spokesman for the bureau.
(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)
