BELLEVUE, Wash. — A weeklong strike by Teamsters against Republic Services is causing garbage to pile up across parts of King and Snohomish counties, prompting the company to open temporary drop-off sites for residential waste.

The labor stoppage, which has disrupted residential pickups but not most commercial or critical services, has led to long waits at emergency disposal sites. On Wednesday, drivers lined up for nearly an hour at Bellevue’s Bannerwood Park to unload trash.

“It is a great service, but it took us an hour to get here,” one resident said.

Shawn Wang, a Bellevue resident whose garbage was supposed to be collected last Friday morning, said his trash cans, like many others affected by the strike, are now overflowing.

"I feel really sad for the situation," Wang said. "I can understand why the workers are on strike. This is kind of affecting everybody's daily life. Everybody has to skip work to dump their trash."

Temporary sites are scheduled this week at Odle Middle School in Bellevue, Canyon Ridge Middle School in Kent, and the ShoWare Center. Hours vary by location.

Workers are calling for improved wages and benefits. “We don’t want this garbage piling up. We want to return to work. But we refuse to be exploited,” said Teamsters President Sean M. O’Brien.

Republic Services has apologized for the disruption, saying some employees have been threatened for attempting to cross picket lines. No end to the strike has been announced.