Garbage and recyclables pile up as Omicron takes its toll

The Omicron variant is sickening so many sanitation workers around the U.S. that some cities have had to delay or suspend garbage or recycling pickups, angering residents shocked that governments can’t perform this most basic of functions. “If it was a business that wanted to come in here, they would dump money in to make it happen.” Cities including Atlanta, Nashville and Louisville, Ky., are so shorthanded they have temporarily stopped collecting things like recyclable bottles, cans, paper and plastic, yard waste or oversized junk to focus on the grosser, smellier stuff. Combine that with relatively low vaccination levels among front-line sanitation workers and you have a “perfect storm for delayed collection,” the association’s executive director, David Biderman, said this week. Atlanta officials said Monday that because of the worker shortage, recycling and yard waste will be picked up “as staffing allows.” Los Angeles said delays in the collection of recyclables could continue through the month. Harry Nespoli, president of the union local representing the city’s sanitation workers, said some are coming back after quarantining, while others are heading home after testing positive for the virus: “Right now it’s a swinging door.” In Philadelphia, which has sometimes been called “Filthadelphia” because of the condition of its streets, 10% to 15% of the 900-person sanitation workforce is out on any given day, leading to delays in waste collection, according to Streets Commissioner Carlton Williams.