Rebuilding New Orleans from the Back of a Garbage Truck
By Marcus Zwaine
New Orleans’ public sanitation work is currently privatized, with big profits going to private operators. Which as a capitalist I believe as a good thing; unless, that profit comes from the public trough. Always at a negative community impact: lower wages, no pensions, and minimal benefits for the people who keep the city running.
Take Raysean, a junior level mechanic for one of the city’s waste contractors. He earns $22 an hour maintaining safety equipment and truck engines … essential work. He works 56 hours a week, pays his child support on time, and keeps his household afloat. But when his car broke down, the $2,000–$2,300 repair bill was out of reach. Now, he pays for ride shares to get to work, which eats up his earnings and makes saving nearly impossible.
• If the City of New Orleans operated its public sanitation in house as many cities do, mechanics like Raysean could be earning $42–$52 an hour, with pensions and medical benefits. Workers on the back of the truck could make $26–$32 an hour. These wages would mean:
• Economic stability: One job could support a family, reducing reliance on multiple jobs and public assistance.
• Career sustainability: Workers could spend their entire careers in sanitation, retiring with dignity.
• Local reinvestment: Wages and benefits would circulate in our economy instead of leaving it in private profits.
• Workforce expansion: A municipal model could add 100 higher paying jobs, boosting the city’s tax base and consumer spending power.
We don’t have to overhaul the whole system at once. The City could start with one section of New Orleans as a pilot program. Track costs, efficiency, and community benefits. Compare them to the current private model.
The numbers point to a clear truth: the fastest way to grow New Orleans’ economy is by paying our essential workers wages that reflect the value they bring to the city. Garbage collection isn’t just a public service, it’s an opportunity to increase household income with our own resources.
