Behind every smelly truck and every garbage can is a real person, doing the thankless, but necessary job of collecting your trash.
Zach Williams
Garbage collecting isn’t the world’s most glamorous job, nor is it the sweetest smelling, however, some will tell you that earning 100K a year, or more, without a college diploma is certainly a sweet deal.
A little known fact, though, is that the life of a garbage collector can be not just dangerous, but downright deadly. This involves much more than just truck injuries, even though these are the most common, but items carelessly placed in the trash, and repetitive injuries also abound.
Trash Collectors and Death
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reports that there were 599 fatal injuries sustained by trash collectors between 2003 and 2009. Most of these fatalities involve the person being injured by the truck itself.
For example, a 69 year old garbage collector noticed that his truck began rolling backwards as it began its compact cycle.He ran after the truck in an attempt to stop it and fell. The truck ran over him, crushing him to death.
Other fatalities include falling off the back of the truck and striking their heads on the pavement or slipping on garbage and hitting their heads on sidewalks or the truck itself. Waste management workers are in the top three when it comes to jobs having the greatest risk of injury due to a fall and in the top six among jobs with the greatest number of fatalities.
Other Threats
Home and business owners don’t generally think of their trash collector when they toss dangerous items, such as large chunks of broken glass, dog, cat or even human feces, pet carcasses, wild animal carcasses (such as rats or possums) into the trash.
One worker in New York City was killed after inhaling the fumes of a hazardous chemical that someone had carelessly dumped in a trash can.
Animal carcasses should go to animal control for proper disposal, but many people simply dump the animal in the trash, exposing their garbage collector to disease.
The Stress, Pain and Strain of the Job
For most, trash collecting is a pain. Literally. Picking up cans or bags that can weigh as much as 50 pounds over and over and over again, despite snow, rain or blazing heat. Hoisting themselves to ride on the back of the truck and then stepping down often results in shoulder, elbow, knee, and/or ankle injuries. Hernias are an extremely common hazard among trash collectors, as are back problems.
To add insult to possible injuries, many people have little or no patience (or respect) for garbage workers and their trucks. Impatient drivers zip around trucks, sometimes even driving in the wrong lanes of traffic to do so, which puts garbage collectors, as well as others, at risk.
Even when the truck isn’t moving, it has the potential to be a hazard when the trash is compacted. The average hydraulic pressure of a garbage truck is about 2,000 pounds per square inch. Which means that workers can be hit by items that break and accidentally fly out the back at incredible speeds. One worker on Staten Island was knocked unconscious by a bowling ball that went flying out the back of the truck when the compressor was turned on.
Remember that Garbage Collectors are People
Behind every smelly truck and every garbage can is a real person, doing the thankless, but necessary job of collecting your trash. Imagine what your home and yard would look like if you had to keep everything you throw in the trash? You would take some serious steps to stop the amount of trash you brought into your home, wouldn’t you?
Zach Williams is the Outreach Coordinator for American Disposal (Manassas, VA). American Disposal Services would like to remind you to be kind to your garbage collector. They don’t get a great deal of credit for what is considered the dirtiest job in town. For more information, call (703) 368-0500 or (866) 884-8700, or visit their location Web pages for Fairfax County, Prince William County, Loudoun County, Arlington County, Alexandria, Fauquier County, and Montgomery County.