Meet Veronica Richardson, Rear-Loading Compactor Truck Driver

Veronica Richardson loves to go above and beyond when executing her tasks. She is also not afraid to take on new challenges, like driving one of NYCHA’s rear-loading compactor trucks.  

In November 2021, NYCHA’s Waste Management Department started a rear-loader collection program to remove more than five tons of waste daily from several developments across the city.   

Ms. Richardson, who started her NYCHA career a decade ago as a Caretaker at Washington/Lexington Houses, is now one of two females driving the rear-loader trucks.  

After her time as a Caretaker, Ms. Richardson worked as a driver for the General Services Department, delivering mail to various NYCHA locations. She then joined Fleet Services, where she worked in the storeroom.  

“I was like a Swiss army knife,” Ms. Richardson recalled about the early days of her NYCHA career. In search of a new challenge, she applied to the Waste Management Department.  

“I did my homework about Waste Management,” she said, adding that at the time “they had these small garbage trucks that I thought were cute. It was a change, but since I’ve been in the field before, I know the kind of results I can produce. I was excited by the things I was hearing, what to look forward to in the near future. And since I’ve been there, I believe I’m an all-star.” 

Ms. Richardson’s day begins at 6 a.m., when she picks up her truck and heads out to her assigned developments. At the developments, there are designated locations known as drop sites where she picks up the garbage; she then heads out to the dump site. 

“I believe this program is excellent, because we get to really help out the development so that they don’t have to depend on another agency to pick up their garbage,” she said. “And I think we do a good job.” 

Ms. Richardson and her co-workers collect garbage from developments on days when they are not serviced by the New York City Department of Sanitation, thus helping to improve the overall health and safety of NYCHA staff and residents. 

“Veronica is a valued team player who is always up for the challenge,” said Alfred Ferguson, NYCHA’s Senior Director of Waste Management Operations. “Just recently, she took the initiative to enroll and train with a private training group on her own personal time to successfully pass the most arduous and heralded Class A commercial driver license (CDL) road test. Having a member of the Waste Management Department team with a Class A CDL will provide us with greater flexibility to procure and test new waste management vehicles that require operators to possess a CDL license. I am proud to have such a dedicated and reliable member of our team.” 

For Ms. Richardson, obtaining the Class A CDL license was motivated partly by her interest in taking on new challenges and partly to inspire other women to aim higher.  

“I trained with a manual tractor trailer, so now I get to put the pedal to the metal,” she said. “I like the attention that it does bring, because when women see another woman handling a big truck like that, they’re like, ‘Alright girl, alright girl!’ and it makes me feel like we can do it. Girl power!” 

Ms. Richardson credits her supervisor, Ray Levan, for encouraging her to go above and beyond. And her advice for colleagues: “Stay busy, you stay on the go, and you look for better ideas to improve the work; that’s what we do.”