America's Best-Paid Garbage Collectors

Garbage collectors have a difficult job. Sometimes shifts can begin as early as 3 a.m. and they have to head out in torrential downpours, freezing cold winters or burning hot summers. Their rounds are of course dirty but the profession is also dangeous. It involves heavy lifting and the inhalation of dangerous substances such as exhaust fumes and toxins. Given the challenges garbage collectors face, how much do they actually get paid?

Msn dissected Bureau of Labour Statistics data to provide an overview of the states and federal territories with the highest mean wages for garbage and recycling workers in 2018. They found that pay is highest in New York where the mean wage is $56.280. They are also well-compensated in Illinois ($52,370) and California ($51,860). Along with decent pay, some American garbage workers like to boast that they are one of the few blue-collar professions that can't be outsourced to China.