DC Sanitation Worker Defying Odds as One of Few Women on Team

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): When the trash truck rides by, one typically sees a guy hanging on the back, then hopping off to grab neighbors’ detritus. Though on some routes in D.C. neighbors can catch a smiley, lipsticked, and Gucci glasses-wearing technician more than keeping up with her male coworkers. “The kids when they see me, the residents they be amazed to see a female on the back of the truck,” Lisa Payton said.

DC’s Department of Public Works (DPW) said Payton is one of six women who ride on the back of the city’s dump trucks. They said out of their total 273 sanitation workers, 24 are women. “It’s cool,” her male partner said. “She works better than a lot of dudes.”

Payton joined DPW 22 years ago. “[My] parents [suggested it]. When I was 18, I needed a job. They asked me did I want to work for DPW, because they knew it was going to be a career choice for the future. And I’ve been here ever since,” she said.

Courtesy: www.wasteadvantage.com