Appreciating the Garbage Truck

Large parts of the East Bay including Oakland are currently in a state of trash as the Garbage Men/Women are on strike. Some neighborhoods haven't had their trash picked up since July 2nd and concern about smell, flies, and rodents is rising (think about all those July 4th leftovers, still there). The garbage company has replacement workers out there but it's not at full capacity. It is also being noticed that low income communities are being unfairly passed over so that more affluent neighborhoods can get timely trash pick-up
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/12/MNGK0QV7HF1.DTL&hw=garbage&sn=009&sc=310.

My area is somehow not affected as we are under contract with a different waste management company. And as I've been seeing the garbage truck lately, doing its normal thing, I can't help but feel grateful. Thank you for picking up my trash and recycling. Thank you for doing a dirty job.

I hope the whole situation can get resolved quickly, with fair wages and treatment given.