Life as a City Employee

Growing up, i never thought i'd end up working for the city i was born and raised in. Often considered the fourth largest city in North America, this is certainly the biggest company i've worked for. This being my third year now, i started out as a Solid Waste Collector, or the simple term, Garbage Man. I actually stopped smoking weed for 2 months during the hiring process (getting a medical from my doctor, eye exam, physical fit and strength exam.) because i thought they would drug test. That was all for naught as when i actually started working, there were guys who smoked 420 while driving the trucks, other guys coming to work reeking of alcohol, some even stopping for drinks on breaks. Even supervisors would be on the job while high. Guys would laugh at me when i told them i chilled out on smoking for that reason. That was the one thing i never did, go to work high. Too much of a liability, i'm operating a 20 tonne truck so i probably would have backed up into a fence, hit a cyclist or something stupid like that.

My first day was a breeze, they sent me out in a truck with two veterans training me. Picking up yard waste was what we were tasked with. The format is 30 minute shifts between partners. So i would drive for a half hour while my partner would throw/collect outside on the back of the truck, then we'd switch after the time is up. The system gives an adequate amount of rest though there are a select few that prefer to be out and throw all day.

Being a municipal worker has it's bad things and some of the public doesn't like us. That same day I remember i had to pull out of a parking space with the truck while a car was in front of me. Right then a passerby on the sidewalk whips out his phone and starts filming, waiting to catch a collision on tape. I prevailed though, took my time and got out of the space safely.

The citizens also don't care about what's supposed to go in the garbage and what isn't. I've seen dead animals, vomit, drywall, Sometimes you'd open a garbage bin and sawdust would fly right into your face, Bedbugs, Roaches on mattresses and furniture.
Don't let me get started about the green/organic bins. Yes, of course they're instructed to put unwanted food, diapers and animal waste in there. Sometimes you'd open a green bin to dump into the hopper and just see piles of dog shit not bagged or anything. Kitty litter is heavy as fuck. In the summer time, millions of maggots is what you'd see in the bins all day. Plus the heat intensifies the smell but you kind of get used to it.

The people also don't know there's actually a limit to how much the organic bins are supposed to weigh. - 44 lbs. A lot of them are just so heavy, i'd just leave them and carry on. The supervisors tell you you're supposed to leave a tag explaining why you left it but fuck that. There's just too many bins to be stopping and doing that all the time. Some residents would often watch you from inside their homes, seeing if i'd take it or not. When i didn't, they'd come out; "Why didn't you take my bin?" Of course i'd like to tell them in my own special way why i didn't collect it but as a city worker, you have to play it cool and be nice to them. "Sorry sir/mam. It's just too heavy and there's a weight restriction unfortunately." One older brown guy got so mad, started shouting and going on like he was in the right. I was actually going to tell him where to go but right then my partner came out from the front of the truck and dumped it for him. Situation diffused.

Asian peoples' green bins are the heaviest though. I really don't know what they put in them. So, because i couldn't leave them all i'd have to open the bin and throw the plastic bags in the back of the truck one by one. Just to make it manageable. On top of it all, the job kills your body. Stepping off the back step of the truck a hundred times a day, lifting and throwing hundreds of bins, and since the trucks are in bad shape, you're breathing in harmful exhaust and diesel particulate fumes. Sometimes so much to the point i'd get a headache. Some veterans who've been working there for 20 - 30 years are limping, gotten knee and hip replacements, broken bones, nerve damage, etc. To me, it's really not worth it in the long run.

Don't get me wrong, there's actually good things about the job. If you get to an area early in the morning, people really don't want to miss the garbage truck so you'd see women come out scantily clad with not much on. Some residents give money, gift cards, beer, wine, candies, food, etc. Especially around Christmas time. Although management tells you not to take things from the people - Conflict of Interest, you'd be a fool not to. Besides, it's rude to decline when somebody's offering you something.

After two years doing that, i transferred to the litter department and it's like night and day. The easiest job i've ever had. A street cleaner with a bag and broom. I don't get dirty, don't have to deal with irate homeowners, don't have to subject my body to physical abuse, it's all good. Sure i have to deal with seeing the same beggars, street people and crackheads everyday but it's a good trade-off.