Abstract
Limited opportunities for the unskilled in the formal economy force many into informal street
waste-picking activities. The income from these activities is not sufficient to lift them out of
poverty. This article analyses income data of 873 street waste pickers to assess how identified
factors explain income variations among them and whether they can endogenously influence
their earnings. The results of descriptive, ordinary least square regression and quantile
regression analyses show that they can do little to improve their income except to use a trolley
and to start early in the morning. To improve their income, policy interventions to integrate
them into waste management plans are recommended.