Mayor Tom Barrett gets hands dirty taking out the trash on Thursday

MILWAUKEE -- Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett was caught on camera getting his hands dirty on Thursday, December 27th. Mayor Barrett donned jeans and safety wear and took to the streets to serve as a sanitation worker for the day. 

Mayor Barrett said he hoped to bring some attention to the hard workers with the Department of Public Works, while at the same time, emphasizing the importance of separating recyclables from garbage.

"Recycling, where we make money, has gone up. The part where we lose money, the garbage, has gone down. We've probably saved about a couple million dollars over the last few years," Mayor Barrett said.

Mayor Barrett said he believes the best way to bring media attention to the topic is to get down and dirty. He pledged to spend an hour taking out the trash, but it only took him a few minutes to learn some tricks of the trade, and the dangers that come with the job, especially in the winter.

"It can be very slippery. I can see where people get injured doing this," Mayor Barrett said.

Mayor Barrett urges residents to salt driveways and keep up the recycling to help keep sanitation workers safe, and save the city some green.