Waste piles up in North Rhine-Westphalia as refuse collectors go on strike
Strikes in the public sector
may be over
, but at Remondis - a private company that provides waste management services for a number of municipalities in western Germany - industrial actions continue.
Workers at the Remondis branch in Essen were called to strike by the Verdi trade union since Monday. Yellow bins that have not been emptied in the city will remain full through Easter and into next week.
"Subsequent emptying cannot take place due to the upcoming holidays," the waste management company announced, according to a
report
in
Der Westen.
Residents whose plastic and food container trash will have piled up considerably by next week are advised to put any extra waste in the standard transparent waste bags and leave them next to their bins to be picked up at the next scheduled collection.
Which cities and towns are affected?
Beyond Essen, Remondis also serves surrounding regions in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as parts of the Ruhr region and the Rhineland.
Rubbish bins in Westphalia-Lippe have also been left uncollected this week, and in the district of Olpe.
Wolfgang Wilmes from Olpe
told
WDR
that his garbage has not been picked up for four weeks. He says he has no choice but to let the garbage pile up and hold his nose when passing by the bins.
Disruptions are also reported in Münsterland, the district of Coesfeld, the city of Münster, and the district of Steinfurt.
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In other regions, service disruptions are felt in paper recycling or organic waste collection services.
In the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, paper collection is paused in Wilnsdorf. In Freudenberg and Kreuztal, the biowaste remains. In the Hochsauerland, all waste collection has been stopped in Schmallenberg.
Some Remondis recycling centres are also closed. But as a precautionary measure, Remondis has reportedly collected waste from certain commercial businesses on Tuesday.
READ ALSO:
Why you'll have to take more care sorting your biowaste in Germany from May
Why are Remondis workers striking?
As part of ongoing collective bargaining negotiations, the Verdi trade union is demanding a nine percent salary raise, or at least €350 more in monthly salaries for employees as well as €200 more per year of training for trainees.
These demands mirror those of many groups of public sector, transport and postal workers that also recently engaged in warning strikes led by Verdi.
On Wednesday, hundreds of garbage workers rallied in Oberhausen.
Remondis criticised the decision to strike in a statement, suggesting it comes "entirely at the expense of citizens and traders in the affected regions."
Of course, some residents who have been left with piles of stinking garbage over the holiday weekend may also have a hard time finding sympathy for the cause.
"I can understand the garbage men and women to a certain extent, but on the other hand for us as a family, it's totally stupid that the garbage is left lying around," a resident from Altenberge told
WDR
.
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