PHILADELPHIA —  Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and City officials today shared updates on the City of Philadelphia’s response and operations in regard to the AFSCME District Council 33 (DC33) work stoppage, which has lasted two days. The City of Philadelphia continues to delivery essential services and public safety to residents and businesses.

“The City of Philadelphia remains committed to reaching a fair and fiscally responsible contract with our municipal workers who are members of DC 33,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker during Wednesday’s press conference. “In the meantime, we are laser-focused on providing the essential city services that our residents need and deserve with little to no interruption.”

“While the City supports all lawful protest activity, our priority is to ensure that essential operations can continue in service of Philadelphia residents,” said Renee Garcia, City Solicitor. “We are grateful for the issued court orders which mandated the revival of staffing at critical workstations and established lawful parameters for picketing while maintaining standards of safety for both striking and working employees. However, even with the court order to mitigate illegal activities, some disgraceful and illegal behavior continues, and it has to stop now.”

“We thank residents for their patience and cooperation. The Department of Sanitation continues to increase resources as they become available. Staff are removing piles around dumpsters as quickly as possible at each location throughout the day,” said Crystal Jacobs Shipman, Department of Sanitation Commissioner. “Our staff is also continuously monitoring the locations for excess trash volume and capacity while assessing and evaluating sites for possible relocation of dumpsters as needed.  This continues to be a fluid situation that dictates staff on hand to work to the best of their ability with the resources available. We appreciate everyone’s assistance as the department navigates through the work stoppage.”

The City has released the following additional information and updates:

Department of Sanitation
The Department of Sanitation is working to increase capacity at dumpster site locations. Piles that may accumulate near the dumpsters are being monitored and collected separate from the dumpster removal. The dumpsters themselves are scheduled to be serviced multiple times throughout the day. Vendors will be swapping out full dumpsters with empty ones at each location. This takes time as vendors navigate through traffic, tightly dense neighborhoods and parking challenges. This is a fluid situation so there will be continuous assessment and evaluation of sites for possible relocation of dumpsters as needed.

The Department of Sanitation is excited to report that the Sanitation Convenience Center at Delaware Ave and Wheatsheaf Lane is now accessible to residents with no entry challenges. During the work stoppage the center is open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. We urge residents to not place materials at the curb and illegally dump. The Department has received feedback regarding certain dumpster locations and has made necessary adjustments to the list. For the most current list of dumpster sites, please visit phila.gov/sanitation.

Youth Activities
With all that is going on, it is of critical importance that we continue to focus on ensuring that our city’s children and youth have safe, positive and fun activities to do this summer.  PAL Centers are open to the public for “drop in” hours on the following days and times:

  • Monday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
  • Saturday from 1 p.m. to 9 pm

For availability on any other days and times, please call your PAL center directly.  Find the nearest PAL Center here.

The City also has six Community Evening Resource Centers (CERCs) located throughout the City.  The Centers are open from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., 7-days a week.  Youth can participate in opportunity to do exciting things like sports, Photography, cooking, yoga, and video-gaming classes at the Centers. Find the nearest CERC location here.

July 4th Celebrations
City officials released information about road closures, safety, and public transportation associated with upcoming Wawa Welcome America Festival July 4th events.

For the scheduled road closures, SEPTA detours, and other information related to theJuly 4th festivities, visit phila.gov/ose.

For the full schedule of Wawa Welcome America events, visit july4thphilly.com.

Stay Informed
The City will release additional updates as they become available and continue to update the what you need to know about the city work stoppage blog on the City’s website with the latest information.

  • For the latest updates from the City, follow @PhilaOEM on X (Twitter) or Facebook.
  • Other City X (Twitter) accounts to follow for developments, response, and service information: @PhiladelphiaGov, @PhilaStreets.
  • Sign up for the City’s free text alert system, ReadyPhiladelphia, and local media updates regarding service availability and any changes due to potential disruptions. You can get official ReadyAlerts updates from the Office of Emergency Management to your phone by texting READYPHILA to 888-777.
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