'We want to get paid': Durham sanitation workers ask City Council for higher wages

Sanitation workers in Durham gathered outside Monday’s Durham City Council meeting, demanding a pay raise.

Workers are asking for a pay rate of $25 an hour. Sanitation workers say they currently make $19.50 an hour. After protesting outside, sanitation workers went inside and addressed the City Council.

“We want to get paid. How can our job be so important and get paid so little?” one sanitation worker asked.

Sanitation workers previously went on strike in September 2023, asking for more money in their paychecks.

The City of Durham approved bonuses for city employees on October 5, ranging between $500 and $5,000 for full-time employees. During the meeting, the worker said the bonuses and 4% raises only benefit people on a higher wage scale.

Union workers said the bonuses did not address their hourly wages or their goal of earning a livable wage.

“I don’t know where we go from here, because a closed mouth doesn’t get fed,” another worker said.

Workers, however, remain hopeful that city leaders will reach a deal with sanitation workers.

“I don’t have confidence in man, but I have confidence in principle,” one worker said.