There are currently 6,240 workers employed by the New York's Sanitation Department. The base salaries for these employees is $33,746 and that number can nearly double after just five years with the company. While the wages are appealing, many do not know that sanitation workers have the highest fatality rate within the U.S.
See "Sanitation Work Offers Middle-Class Incomes for Some, but Comes With Dangers", Rachel L. Swarns, The New York Times, May 17, 2015