Trash piles up next to Veteran's Stadium in August 1986 during 20-day union strike. (Credit: William Thomas Cain/Cain Images)
In 1986, Philadelphia’s largest blue-collar union went on a 20-day sanitation strike. The strike, led by District Council 33, resulted in massive trash pile-ups on the city streets.
It is estimated that over the 20-day stretch, the city accumulated 20,000 tons of trash. The pile-up, mixed with the July summer heat, created a massive public health hazard.
After 20 days, District Council 33 voted to return to work without striking a new contract agreement with the city. Previously, the city had threatened to hire private contractors to take over their work if the strike had continued.
District Council 33 is currently on day two of their current work stoppage - the first since 1986. Within hours of the strike beginning, residents of Philadelphia reported trash pile-ups on the city sidewalks.
Mayor Cherelle Parker implemented 63 drop-off locations throughout the city to try and prevent pile-ups on curbsides; however, many of the pile-ups are at the location of trash drop-offs. Some residents feel that Parker is not doing enough.
After just one day on strike… this is what the trash drop off location looks like at South 15th Street by Marconi Plaza in South Philadelphia. @6abc pic.twitter.com/2UNlVG9hrf
Just walked by the “city trash collection site” on Broad & Snyder. It’s… a dumpster. It’s also nearly full already, halfway through Day 1 of the strike. If THIS is @PhillyMayor’s plan to avoid paying @afscme33 workers, Philly is going to be full-on apocalyptic by this weekend pic.twitter.com/JnSsP4VZt1
— Kim Kelly (@GrimKim) July 1, 2025
Trash is already piling up in Philly following the city workers striking. pic.twitter.com/nS6U52O58U
Concerns for health and safety are growing as the strike continues. Residents of Philadelphia have taken to social media to express their frustration with Mayor Parker and her inability to strike a contract agreement with the union.
If you live in Philadelphia, your street might smell like trash this morning.
The reason?
Our mayor. pic.twitter.com/XDz1P0mFog
In 1986, the estimated population of Philadelphia was just over 1.6 million people, while the city currently has an estimated population of just over 1.5 million people. With the similarity in the number of Philadelphia residents from 1986 to the present day, there is concern that the trash pile-ups will continue to grow to be identical to 1986 if a resolution is not made soon.
History is on a very smelly path to repeating itself.
