Health emergency called in Boston sanitatio strike

August 12, 1980

Officials declared a public health emergency Monday on the fourth day of a strike by about 1,000 city workers who have defied a court order to return to work. The workers, including garbage collectors, road maintenance workers, and other laborers, struck last week to protest what they said was political favoritism by Mayor Kevin White in appointing supervisors to city jobs. The strike has left mounds of rubbish, including rotting produce from a major fruit and vegetable market, inundating many streets and tourist sites.