3 LAPD Employees Fired For Non-Compliance With City's COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Three LAPD employees have been fired for violating the city's mandate to get vaccinated against COVID-19, or receive a religious or medical exemption, according to LAPD Assistant Chief Dominic Choi.
Seven more employees face termination, and a total of 14 personnel – 13 sworn and one civilian – have been found out of compliance with the vaccination mandate, Choi told the Police Commission on Tuesday. About 83% of the department is fully vaccinated, 0.4% is partially vaccinated, and 16.2% is not vaccinated at all. More than 2,000 exemptions are pending, Choi said.
But with case rates dropping and mask mandates relaxing, City Councilman Joe Buscaino – who is running for mayor – is calling for the city's employee vaccination mandate to be repealed. On Friday, Buscaino said he believes "it should be a matter of personal choice and that we should respect our employees' civil liberties and allow the to make their own personal medical decisions."
The mandate for city employees to be vaccinated was approved by the City Council on Aug. 18. Employees were required to be inoculated against COVID-19, or request a religious or medical exemption, by Dec. 18.
(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)