NYC Recycling Workers Vote To Unionize, Avoiding Citywide Strike

SUNSET PARK, NY — Workers at the city's largest recycling facility voted to unionize Friday, avoiding a strike that would have caused garbage to "pile up" in city streets as recycling effectively came to a halt.

The workers at Sims Municipal Recycling in Sunset Park had threatened to strike if Sims did not respect their request for a union. Sims agreed to an independent unionization vote, which took place Friday and resulted in the workers unionizing under Teamsters Local 210.

“It feels so good to say that we are Teamsters,” Jordy Lopez, a Sims worker and union leader, said in a Teamsters press release. “We are thankful for the support we have received from the community and government officials. We fought so hard, but now it is a new day at Sims. We will move forward together to bargain a contract that guarantees fairness and respect for every worker.”

Workers at the plant had demanded better pay, cheaper healthcare and fairer working conditions, which they will now negotiate with Sims management.

“We are proud to count Sims’ Brooklyn workers as Teamsters,” George Miranda, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 210, said in the release. “Our union is working with the environmental justice movement to transform New York’s sanitation industry to protect workers and communities. This victory at Sims is one step in that larger fight. I thank all of our elected officials and the labor movement for standing behind these workers in their campaign for justice.”

The New York City Council held a hearing this week about the possible strike at the facility, which processes all of the city's municipal recycling.

"SMR is pleased we were able to reach an agreement with Teamsters officials to allow this expedited vote, and we especially appreciate the role of the New York City Council in helping to make this vote a reality on an accelerated timetable," a Sims statement said.

"SMR has union contracts in many locations. We’ve participated in negotiations at various union locations in the metropolitan area, and have always been successful in reaching mutually acceptable agreements. We have no doubt that, working together, we will reach the same result here."

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Tons Of Garbage Would 'Pile Up' On NYC Streets As Recycling 'Grinds To A Halt' After Strike