Priority Waste hires staff, purchases vehicles to address service issues, CEO says

Priority Waste's CEO apologized for recent trash-collection issues and outlined plans to improve service in a letter to the company's Metro Detroit customers. 

"We want to acknowledge and sincerely apologize for the frustration and inconvenience many of you have experienced. We take full responsibility for the service failures that have occurred," CEO Aaron Johnson said on Wednesday. "We are committed to earning back your trust, not through words alone, but through sustained improvement and reliable performance." 

Priority Waste, based in Clinton Township, was founded in 2018. It took over GFL Environmental's residential waste collection services in 2024, acquiring trash service contracts for over 700,000 Michigan residents at the time. 

During the past few months, complaints about missed or late trash, compost or recycling material pickups included those from Westland, St. Clair Shores and Dearborn Heights. 

In response, Westland is withholding $100,000 from a future payment to Priority Waste, citing repeated service failures. Dearborn Heights also said it would demand a $13,000 deduction from Priority Waste and withhold a $250,000 payment after delays in compost, recycling and bulk pickups. 

And St. Clair Shores has now decided to award its contract to another provider, Express Waste Services. 

Johnson's letter to customers explained that he took over the company leadership a month ago, and that steps have been taken during that time to "restoring reliable, consistent waste collection services across the communities it serves." Those efforts include purchasing nearly 200 previously rented vehicles; he explained that vehicle breakdowns had been among the causes of service interruptions. 

He also said the company has hired 41 drivers, contracted with a customer service center to keep up with incoming calls and purchased more collection containers to catch up on a backlog for the bins. 

Johnson said he will provide another update in a month, during which company officials will monitor how the additional vehicles and staffing handle increased demand during the Fourth of July holiday. 

Priority Waste currently provides waste, recycling and compost services to more than 1.3 million households for 125 communities in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana; along with thousands of commercial customers.

The above video originally aired on June 4, 2026.