How many garbage men in the us

The general public does not perceive sanitation workers the same way as others around them. People rarely acknowledge their presence, insult them, and tragically, sanitation workers can even end up under the wheels of our cars, contributing to the extremely high mortality rate of Not only do sanitation workers suffer automobile injuries, but they are also often injured on the job as well when people are reckless with their garbage.

Nagle describes the injuries sustained by sanitation workers as being poked by strange needles, cut by broken glass, and killed by improperly disposed of chemicals.

In New York, in , a sanitation worker was killed when a bag of trash filled with hydrochloric acid exploded and drenched the man picking it up. Nobody was ever held responsible. While other public servants of New York receive benefits for the dangerous and essential services that they provide for the city, sanitation workers rarely receive any compensation.

They do not receive discounts at restaurants or stores similar to firefighters and police officers, and unlike other public servants, they are not protected by policies passed by the government, such as health care coverage and paid leave.

Sanitation workers are almost never thanked while on the job, and, if anything, are often met with insults due to noises from their equipment in the mornings. In her book, however, Nagle describes that many sanitation workers take pride in their work.

When two sanitation workers from UC Berkeley discussed their work at the University, they explained that they were proud to make Berkeley a campus conducive to learning. Due to lack of new ideas and real motivation, there was not much to do with your waste during this time period.

People would either burn their personal trash and bury it, or let it pile up. Nobody saw garbage as a threat to way of life until population boomed. This age of new waste disposal ideas included everything from saving dog feces to developing mass burn plants. Every new mind had a chance at saving its cities waste problems or making a quick buck.

The Industrial Revolution was the beginning of more materials, trade, and machinery. Coal was one of the largest contributors to the revolution because it could produce more materials faster. Over 3. Unfortunately, all the new production left used materials and created scavengers.

Toshers, Mudlarks, and Dustmen, were nicknames given to those in England who gave a new meaning to dirty work. They would sell anything from dog feces used to purify leather to ash added to mortar , for a buck. In order to prevent mass scavenging, and cleanup the country, the Public Health Act of was created to give authority for waste collection. These bins were used to store ash waste and emptied weekly.

Shortly after Britain came up with the most obvious idea; a giant burn plant to burn waste and generate electricity from steam. Around Ben Franklin started the first street cleaning service and encouraged the public to dig pits to dispose of their waste.

We were even smart enough to melt down a statue of King George III and use it as ammunition against his armies. The Big Apple also developed the nations first comprehensive system for garbage management. Although, they were quickly vetoed due to nasty odors. In , dumping waste in the most convenient location was common practice.

They would dump in the ocean, wetlands, or any given waste land. The U. The move into the new century demanded planning for our nations waste, and our country was starting to become more civilized. The first aluminum recycling plant opened in Cleveland and Chicago, and more than incinerators closed due to noxious smoke. In after much trial and error incinerators gained more popularity, and about were in operation from the U. Shortly after the horse drawn motor carts are replaced by motorcars and garbage men are very happy.

Toward the end of this time frame landfills are becoming more popular and the methods included dumping at wetlands and covering with soil. This old covered body truck was very popular but posed a problem because the driver had to lift the can above his shoulder. In the Supreme Court banned the dumping of municipal waste into the ocean, which had become very common up to this time. Shortly after the U.

Around cities in the U. After the war, open burning dumps and backyard waste burning was prohibited in most areas. Since nobody can burn their waste to ashes anymore, quantities of paper, packaging and food are much larger.

There are also new opportunities in trash. New types of recycling have created more jobs. At Morris' site in Iowa, she has a crew that only separate recycling for wood, roof shingles, kitchen appliances and electronics. Morris has 45 employees now, up from 35 in Morris plans to hire six more people this year to handle a new recycling system.

Nationally, there are 50, more trash workers today than there were in , according to Labor Department data. Given the shortage of workers, some of them can hope to earn the six-figure salaries of Molina and Sankar, who are members of a labor union that helps negotiate higher salaries.

Related: 1 million Walmart workers get a raise. Molina is buying his first house, a 4-bedroom in Freeport, New York. Divorced with three kids, Molina wants them to have a place outside the city.

On a cold February night, Sankar and Molina were on their route when a young man asked Sankar if Crown was hiring. Sankar gave the young man the company's address and said to call.

When told how much Sankar makes, the young man was in disbelief:. Sankar picked up the last bag at the site, chucked it into the back, jumped onto the truck and smiled. These trash workers make six figures. Personal Finance. The Motley Fool Paid Partner. LendingTree Paid Partner.